From assuming key leadership roles and launching specialty institutes to pioneering first-of-their-kind surgical techniques and advancing research, neurosurgery and orthopedic leaders nationwide are pushing the boundaries of brain and spine care.
Here are five neurosurgery and spine leaders who made headlines this month:
- Ramin Rak, MD, elected chief of neurosurgery at St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center: Spinal neurosurgeon Ramin Rak, MD, was elected chief of neurosurgery at Smithtown, N.Y.-based St. Catherine of Siena Medical Center, effective Jan. 1.
Dr. Rak has practiced with Rockville Centre, N.Y-based NSPC Brain & Spine Surgery for nearly 20 years and specializes in spine surgery, adult brain tumors and skull base disease; he previously served as director of neurological trauma at Oceanside, N.Y.-based Mount Sinai South Nassau and held leadership roles with the Suffolk County Medical Society and the New York State Neurosurgical Society.
- Stanley Hoang, MD, performed world’s first awake dual-approach spinal fusion: Dr. Hoang performed the world’s first awake spinal fusion using a combined lateral and posterior approach, reducing surgical time by half.
Dr. Hoang previously performed Ochsner LSU Health’s (Shreveport, La.) first awake spinal discectomy in 2024; the procedure was selected because the patient was not a candidate for general anesthesia.
- Aaron Cohen-Gadol, MD, launched Atlas Institute of Brain & Spine in Los Angeles: Neurosurgeon Aaron Cohen-Gadol, MD, launched the Atlas Institute of Brain & Spine, a practice focused on complex brain and spine conditions.
Dr. Cohen is known for pioneering techniques to remove complex brain and spine tumors and has performed more than 7,500 complex brain surgeries. The practice is affiliated with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and Saint John’s Health Center in Los Angeles and Santa Monica, Calif.
- Frank Fumich, MD, performed region’s first two-level cervical disc replacement: Dr. Fumich, of the Orthopaedic Institute of Ohio in Lima, performed the region’s first two-level cervical disc replacement using Centinel Spine’s prodisc C implants.
The procedure used the prodisc C Vivo and prodisc C SK devices to treat degenerative disc disease.
- Matthew Halanski, MD, earned NIH grant to advance pediatric spine care research: Matthew Halanski, MD, division chief of orthopedics and sports medicine at Phoenix Children’s Research Institute, received an NIH R01 grant to study children’s spinal growth and flexibility.
Dr. Halanski’s research, conducted in collaboration with the University of Wisconsin–Madison, the University of Missouri–Columbia and the University of California–Berkeley, will use advanced computer simulation modeling to help personalize vertebral body tethering procedures based on a child’s anatomy and growth patterns.
