Spine Surgery Specialist

Nova Neuroscience

Bülent Yapicilar, MD

Neurosurgery & Cerebrovascular, Spinal, and Brain Tumor Neurosurgery located in Tyson Corner, Vienna, VA & Woodbridge, VA

When back and neck pain persists or gets worse despite conservative medical care, spine surgery to repair the underlying problem is often the best option. At Nova Neuroscience, Bülent Yapicilar, MD, is a board-certified neurosurgeon who combines his expertise in surgery with personalized attention and customized care for each person. If you need to relieve your back or neck pain, call one of the offices in Vienna or Woodbridge, Virginia, or use the online booking feature to schedule an appointment and learn about your spine surgery options.

Spine Surgery Q & A

When might I need spine surgery?

Whether you injure your spine or gradually develop a degenerative condition, spinal nerves are often damaged and can cause pain, limited spine movement, and in some cases, problems with your arms and legs.

The spine conditions that commonly benefit from surgery include:

Spinal tumors
Herniated discs
Facet joint arthritis
Bone spurs
Degenerative disc disease
Spondylolisthesis (slipped vertebra)
Degenerative scoliosis
Fractured or compressed vertebrae

Spinal fractures often need immediate surgery, but other spine conditions are initially treated with nonsurgical options before considering surgical repair.

What type of spine surgery might I need?

Dr. Yapicilar has extensive experience performing many different types of spine surgery. He’s an expert in complex procedures such as removing spinal tumors. He frequently performs discectomy, which is surgery to remove part or all of a damaged disc.

In addition to discectomy, other common spinal surgeries include:

Decompression surgery

Injuries and degenerative conditions that affect your spine often pinch nerves. Three of the most common procedures to decompress nerves include laminectomy, foraminotomy, and laminotomy.

Spinal fusion

This procedure joins two adjoining vertebrae using a bone graft to promote growth between the vertebrae, resulting in one strong bone. Dr. Yapicilar may perform a spinal fusion as a primary procedure to correct a spine problem. However, this procedure is often done to restore spine stability after decompression surgery or a discectomy.

Artificial disc replacement

After removing a damaged spinal disc, Dr. Yapicilar may implant a new artificial disc instead of performing a spinal fusion. An artificial disc preserves spine movement while restoring stability.

What is minimally invasive spine surgery?

Spine surgery is minimally invasive when it’s performed using small incisions instead of one larger open incision. Dr. Yapicilar inserts a narrow tube through the small incision to create access to your spine and then uses specialized surgical instruments that fit through the tube.

One of the advantages of a minimally invasive procedure is that the narrow tube slides between muscle fibers. As a result, Dr. Yapicilar doesn’t need to cut through your muscles, so they don’t have to heal after your surgery.

Minimally invasive spine surgery causes less blood loss during surgery, reduces postoperative pain, and promotes a faster recovery.

If you have a spine condition that hasn’t improved, call Nova Neuroscience or schedule an appointment online.

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