Institute for Spine and Scoliosis

Institute for Spine and Scoliosis Anterior Scoliosis Correction Dedicated to the practice of spine surgery, renowned spine and scolios

The Institute for Spine & Scoliosis strives to offer the latest techniques and improvements in spinal surgery, developing new, less invasive and motion sparing treatment options for scoliosis, spondylolisthesis, herniated disk or stenosis, especially in the still-growing spine. Specializing in Spinal Surgery Treatments such as Anterior Scoliosis Correction (ASC). Your child’s scoliosis (for curvatures over 35 degrees) could benefit from

Scoliosis care requires thoughtful evaluation and experienced clinical judgment. Every spine presents differently, and n...
03/19/2026

Scoliosis care requires thoughtful evaluation and experienced clinical judgment. Every spine presents differently, and no two cases are alike.

Recommendations begin with understanding the individual spine rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach.

Care decisions are strongest when guided by knowledge and experience.

đź“Ťspineandscoliosis.com





Spinal movement plays an important role in daily life, from school and work to physical activity. Mobility influences co...
03/16/2026

Spinal movement plays an important role in daily life, from school and work to physical activity. Mobility influences comfort, posture, and overall function.

When discussing scoliosis correction, it is important to consider how an approach supports natural movement and long-term activity goals.

Movement is part of the bigger picture.

đź“Ťspineandscoliosis.com






Scoliosis affects individuals differently. While some may experience discomfort, others may have little to no pain. The ...
03/13/2026

Scoliosis affects individuals differently. While some may experience discomfort, others may have little to no pain. The presence or absence of pain alone does not determine the need for treatment.

Care decisions are based on curve characteristics, progression, balance, and long-term functional considerations.

Clear evaluation helps families understand what truly matters when discussing next steps.

đź“Ťspineandscoliosis.com






03/11/2026

For more mature adults who are getting to 30s, 40s, 50s, does degeneration of the facet joints or degeneration of the disc vertebra limit what you can do with ASC?

Great question. So if I'm having to decide in the 40 to 50 year old age group whether you're doing surgery, the ideal candidate for that is, again, not depending on the size of the curve so much as its flexibility. But if you have a moderate size curve and you're 45 years old, but it's really flexible, then you're a candidate for ASC surgery.

The facet joint arthritis, as we get older, does develop as does the disc degeneration. But if you're moving and you don't have structural pain, it means the joints are not painful. They're not arthritic enough to prohibit ASC surgery.

Obviously, if you have really arthritic facet joints, meaning just like the knuckles on your hand, if you're moving your hand and it hurts across the knuckles, you have a lot of arthritis in the knuckles, well, ASC surgery allows that motion to continue. So it may not be the best option.

But if you have your scoliosis and you have your side swept hand here and you can move and it's not creating pain in those joints, you're a candidate.

And the disc degeneration just goes along with that. It's a natural aging process. And that's not really an issue not to do ASC surgery.

A scoliosis diagnosis does not automatically mean immediate treatment. Many curves are carefully monitored over time to ...
03/09/2026

A scoliosis diagnosis does not automatically mean immediate treatment. Many curves are carefully monitored over time to understand how they behave during growth and development.

Factors such as curve pattern, age, and progression rate influence decision-making. Thoughtful observation can be an appropriate step before considering correction.

Understanding progression allows families to move forward calmly rather than react out of fear.

đź“Ťspineandscoliosis.com







03/09/2026

Can metal rod fusion be risky for someone with prior VBT surgery who participates in high-impact activities like motorsports?

OK, so that's an extension of the last question. But it's more specific to a failed VBT surgery, obviously.

So someone here had VBT surgery, has a 55% failure rate, meaning the correction got lost. Now they're back with their curve. And what's the next step? Well, it depends on where you are in the world.

And there is very few people, as you know, who do ASC other than myself. There's only one other person I would recommend going to. And he's even a few years behind.

So the answer to failed VBT surgery is not a direct line to metal rod fusion. You're better off revising it with ASC surgery. That would be, in my opinion, the best outcome.

And we've done that many times, revising VBT failures with ASC surgery. Beyond that, if you have to go to the metal rod fusion surgery in respect to high-impact activities like motorsports, yes. Again, that question is, where is the stress applied in a high-level contact motorsport, things like that? It's to be at the junctions above or below where the metal rod surgery is.

And so while there's no correlation specifically with an accident and where you might get injured, if you're going to injure the spine in a motorsport and you're actually going to injure the spine, you're more likely to injure it at the junction above or below because the area in between is rigidly supported with metal rods and bone fusion. So that high-impact activity like a motorsport is going to be more dangerous at those junctional levels if that accident is actually going to happen. So it does have to be taken into consideration with those kinds of sports.

03/08/2026

Are there limitations after full recovery in regards to snow or water sports, for example, skiing or surfing?

No, there's not. Because there's no junctional strains that are applied like metal rod surgeries, fusion surgeries. When you do metal rod fusion surgeries, you're creating very stiff, extremely stiff, rigid sections adjacent to non-rigid sections.
And so the four structures there are very focal. With ASC surgery, you're not touching the back muscles. They're fully normal.

And also the strains across the spine are diffuse. And so going back to full sports, we have the teenagers in the college people going back to their competitive sports, D1, D3. So this is not an issue going back to snow or water sports.



03/07/2026

If we don't qualify for ASC, should we expect a response after submitting a case review?

I think we do a pretty good job of generally letting people know they're a candidate or not a candidate. I think it's actually part of our algorithm that we have out there and our nurse practitioner is reviewing those things.

So yes, you do learn if you're not a candidate for ASC. The number one reason for ASC or not being a candidate for ASC is either the curve is overly stiff or unusual or a huge curve that's beyond the limits of ASC. But those are not the mainstream.
The mainstream curves, 40 to 60 degrees, age five up until 45 is pretty much doable. But we would let you know if you were not.



03/05/2026

When was your first ASC surgery done on an adult over 30 and how are they holding up now?

That was many years ago. I don't have the precise date, but we're probably going back to 2016, 15, that time period. So over 10 years probably.

And the reason for that is it's not age dependent. So age becomes a factor if you're 45 and over. But in the 20-year-olds, the 25, 30, 35s, it's really about curve stiffness and size, not age.

And so the difference between a 30-year-old having surgery and a 25-year-old surgery is not about the structure or the correction. It's about overall medical health and things like that. But that doesn't really impact you until you're 45 and over.
So 30 years old, not an issue. It's really about the curve size and stiffness.



At the Institute for Spine & Scoliosis, every patient journey begins with education. Understanding the spine, the curve,...
02/28/2026

At the Institute for Spine & Scoliosis, every patient journey begins with education. Understanding the spine, the curve, and how movement is affected forms the foundation of thoughtful care.

Our approach is guided by experience and centered on preserving natural movement whenever possible. By focusing on education, individualized planning, and long-term mobility, we help patients and families feel informed and supported at every step.

Care decisions are strongest when they are built on understanding, trust, and a clear vision for the future.

đź“Ť Discover our approach at spineandscoliosis.com







02/27/2026

When is your data on disk release being published?

As soon as we can, Robert. I've been working on this data for the last year for the formalization of the most current data sets, but data on the disk release has already been published several times in 2015, 2017, and the whole process of that through those phases. Clearly, that's not the data being published and prepared right now, which is the 2020 to 23 series of patients with several year follow-up.

And that data is the hallmark and marquee data that's going to be coming out. I'm also going to try to put a layman's version of it on the website as we can finalize the preparation, because the preparation for formal publications and journals takes months and months of editing. And it's a scientific level of editing.

The core data is the same. So even if you went to the website right now and you looked at the videos that I put up there with the tables of the data, that is the data, except it's even amplified more now. So it's out there.

We're very transparent about this data for years, and we try to continue to be so. But there'll be two versions, one for the website and then one in formal publication.

Scoliosis care is about more than addressing spinal alignment; it’s about supporting the way the body moves over time. D...
02/25/2026

Scoliosis care is about more than addressing spinal alignment; it’s about supporting the way the body moves over time. Daily activities, physical confidence, and long-term comfort all depend on how the spine functions.

That’s why long-term thinking is essential when discussing scoliosis correction. A mobility-focused perspective helps patients stay active and engaged in school, work, and everyday life as they grow and change.

Looking beyond the curve allows care decisions to align with real-life movement and long-term well-being.

đź“Ť spineandscoliosis.com







Address

3100 Princeton Pike Bldg. 1-D
Lawrenceville, NJ
08648

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+16099121500

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Institute for Spine and Scoliosis posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category