The first neurosurgeon at a Kansas hospital, a competitor on The Masked Singer and eight more spine surgeons to know:
Jessica Aidlen, MD. Newton Wellesley Hospital (Boston). Dr. Aidlen has worked at Newton Wellesley Hospital since 2013. She is a recognized leader and role model for women in medicine, and she teaches orthopedic and spine surgeon residents, according to a 2018 profile by Raising Nerd.
Elvis Francois, MD. Resurgens Orthopaedics (Atlanta). Dr. Francois' areas of expertise are in adult reconstructive spine surgery, minimally invasive surgery and total disc arthroplasty. He was featured on The Masked Singer in 2020.
Thomas Frimpong, DO. Summit Surgical Hospital (Hutchinson, Kan). Dr. Frimpong is Summit Surgical Hospital's first neurosurgeon. He has expertise in scoliosis, complex and minimally invasive spine surgery.
Daniel Hanson, MD. Minnesota Spine Institute (Roseville). Dr. Hanson is the only surgeon in Minnesota who specializes in endoscopic spine surgery, a spokesperson said in an email to Becker's. He's a member of the Norwegian American Orthopedic Society.
Kenneth Hansraj, MD. Nuvance Health (Poughkeepsie, N.Y.). Dr. Hansraj has fellowship training from Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City. His book, Keys to an Amazing Life: Secrets of the Cervical Spine, is a worldwide bestseller.
Milan Herceg, MD. Orthopedic One (Columbus, Ohio). Dr. Herceg performs cervical spine surgery, lumbar spine surgery, minimally invasive spine surgery and microsurgery. He has been named a best doctor by Teladoc each year since 2015.
Kenneth Lee, MD. Modern Spine (Sugar Land, Texas). Dr. Lee earned his medical degree from the Duke University School of Medicine in Durham, N.C., and completed his residency at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. He signed a management agreement with Altitude Wellness, which focuses on a variety of physical therapies.
Kevin Mullins, MD. SpineCare of Long Island (Plainview, N.Y.). Dr. Mullins has performed more than 5,000 neurosurgical procedures. He was named Long Island's top neurosurgeon by the Long Island Business News in 2007.
Matthew Smuck, MD. Stanford (Calif.) University. Dr. Smuck's research has focused on improving outcomes for patients with lower back pain. He received the North American Spine Society's Henry Farfan Award in 2021 for his contributions in spine-related research.
Shaleen Vira, MD. University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center (Dallas). Dr. Vira was admitted to medical school when he was 17 and attended NYU Grossman School of Medicine. He is director of spine surgery research at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
Note: This is not an exhaustive list. Surgeons are listed in alphabetical order. To nominate a surgeon for future lists, please contact Carly Behm at cbehm@beckershealthcare.com.