A team of physicians, who specialize in neurosurgery, orthopedics, physiatry, radiology, physical therapy and pain management, is at its core. Their goal is to treat adults suffering from back and neck conditions caused by injury, illness or aging.

Spine Center physicians have access to cutting-edge surgical techniques as well as minimally invasive treatments and a full range of rehabilitation medicine therapies. All the elements of spine care—from assessment and diagnosis to surgery and rehabilitation—are housed under one roof. This makes the experience more tolerable for patients.

Treatment at the Spine Center begins with a few simple questions. When you call the Center’s hotline (1-877-41-SPINE), a triage nurse will ask questions to determine the cause of your back pain. The nurse will then assign you to two physicians—one surgeon and one non-surgeon. A full evaluation may be ordered using advanced diagnostic procedures and equipment, including MRI, CT scans, diagnostic injection procedures, myelography, ultrasound, EMG and nerve conduction studies.

Physicians usually begin with conservative treatments, including physical therapy, injections, biofeedback, acupuncture or medications for their patients. For patients requiring surgery, procedures such as anterior cervical discectomy; posterior lumbar discectomy; posterior cervical, thoracic and lumbar decompression/laminectomy; anterior and posterior spinal fusion; InFUSE Bone Graft/LT Cage, thoracoscopic spinal surgery; CyberKnife® treatment for spinal tumors, and kyphoplasty are also available.

Because the Spine Center uses a team approach, patients receive more holistic care for early intervention. For example, rather than recommend a round of narcotics for pain, a patient may be referred to a physiatrist who will design a program of rehabilitation.

If surgery is needed, patients spend a day in preoperative education where they learn exactly what their surgery entails and what it will accomplish. They also learn what to expect after surgery and what kind of rehabilitation may be needed in the days and weeks following their hospital stay.

Everyone at the Spine Center at Sinai—from the physicians to house keepers—follows established protocols. Support staff and doctors are all trained to provide a consistent set of information and to expect similar achievements for patients undergoing various inpatient procedures, taking into consideration the uniqueness of each case.

For more information about the Spine Center at Sinai, call the Center hotline at 1-877-41-SPINE or visit http://www.lifebridgehealth.org/sinaibody.cfm?id=1576.

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Spine Center at Sinai