Which Surgeon for Transverse L5-S1 and Spondylolisthesis?

Posted by david2023 @david2023, Jul 5, 2023

I am a VA patient that is eligible for Community Care.. meaning I am authorized to see a civilian surgeon for my situation.

I have a grade 2 spondylolisthesis (they say L5/S1, but with the transverse, different neurosurgeons look like they are confused). The spondy used to not really bother too much me, but with the recent incremental change it's causing significant pain, radiculopathy, weakness, and motor skills.

No question, I've talked to two surgeons who both recommend surgery, but I'd really like to know which type of surgeon would be best to handle my situation... Ortho or Neuro?

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Jennifer, Volunteer Mentor | @jenniferhunter | Jul 5, 2023

Hello @david2023 and welcome to Connect. Both orthopedic and neurosurgeons can be spine surgeons, and sometimes you will find a neurosurgeon who also has orthopedic fellowship training in spine deformity. I had a cervical fusion with a neurosurgeon who also had orthopedic fellowship training. He is a spine deformity specialist. That type of surgeon would be experienced with deformities like scoliosis and stabilization of the spine and hardware such as Harrington rods. Do have a medical center in mind to look for a specialist? It will be a big surgery and you want a surgeon very experienced in more extensive surgeries.

david2023 | @david2023 | Jul 5, 2023

Hello @jenniferhunter,

Thank you for your response... I thought I had a surgeon picked out but the quality of the experience from him and his team was hard to overlook. Additionally, I need to get a second opinion to rest easy. The recommendation would be for an anterior diskectomy then a posterior percutaneous fixation. I'm not sure if that involves Harrington rods. I like what you said about ensuring a neurologist has fellowship in ortho and vice versa. That makes sense. I wonder if ortho might have a different perspective or experience level since I have that transitional vertebra at L5.

Although I understand having good knowledge of the center is important as well as the surgeon, I can't seem to get good info for either, other than my list narrows because I'm required to use a surgeon that is approved for Community Care from the VA. On top of that, no surgeon would waste their time with me unless I can get a referral from my PCP. To do that takes about 3 weeks from the VA and they already pushed back for the second opinion I recently requested. At this point it's the list and browsing reviews and histories.