Becker’s Spine Review

CMS is floating changes to the physician fee schedule for 2026, including two separate conversion factors and a 3.6% increase in physician pay. The July 14 proposal includes a conversion factor for qualifying alternative payment model participants and another for…

In just under three years, Alok Sharan, MD, has seen his practice, Spine and Performance Institute, grow as awake spine surgery gains traction. Dr. Sharan opened the Edison, N.J.-based practice in November 2022 to care for patients beyond the operating…

DISC Surgery Center at Marina del Rey (Calif.) is now in-network with Medicare, according to a July 15 news release. The ASC went in-network after meeting all qualifying health and safety standards under Conditions for Coverage. DISC Surgery Center at…

Here are the top four orthopedic residency programs, from Doximity’s 2025-2026 Residency Navigator. Note: Rankings are as of July 15, 2025. 1. Hospital for Special Surgery/Cornell Medical Center (New York City) Size: 45 residents 2. Mayo Clinic College of Medicine…

A neurosurgeon at Northwell’s Staten Island (N.Y.) University Hospital has performed the first total posterior spine system procedure in Staten Island, N.Y., according to a July 15 report from SI Advance. Ronit Gilad, MD, chair of neurosurgery at SIUH’s Ocean…

Medtech company Wenzel Spine received FDA clearance for panaSIa, an expandable sacroiliac fusion implant.  The implant offers a minimally invasive procedure option for patients with sacroiliac joint dysfunction, according to a July 15 news release from Wenzel Spine.  The approval…

The first cases using the ApolloHipX application were recently successfully completed, and the device produced better efficiency and patient outcomes, according to the surgeon who performed the cases.  The device was developed by Corin, an orthopedic technology and device company,…

Boston Scientific’s Intracept Procedure, the first procedure designed to relieve vertebrogenic pain, has treated 50,000 patients.  In July 2024, there were more than 30,000 patients that had been treated with the Intracept system, according to information shared with Becker’s.  The…

Orthopedic hospitals with physician CEOs were associated with better patient experiences, increased case volume and rankings compared to orthopedic hospitals that weren’t physician-led, according to a study in the Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons.  The study in…

Arun Hariharan, MD, began using an artificial intelligence tool that streamlines spinal imaging for his pediatric patients. He leverages BoneMRI, which creates a CT-like image from an MRI scan. Dr. Hariharan, of Paley Orthopedic and Spine Institute in West Palm…