About me
Dr. Wiesel is chair of Orthopaedic Surgery at MedStar Georgetown University, and a professor and chairman of the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at Georgetown University School of Medicine, a position he's held since 1989. He specializes in treating patients with spinal conditions affecting the neck and lower back.
In addition to patient care, Dr. Wiesel is heavily involved in training the next generation of orthopaedic specialists through his academic and clinical appointments, earning many recognitions for his teaching abilities along the way. He is equally committed to advancing the field through his work with major peer-reviewed publications and professional medical societies. Chief among them are his longstanding positions as Editor-in-Chief, Seminars in Spine Surgery, (Saunders); Executive Editor, The Back Letter (Lippincott Williams & Wilkins); and Member, Board of Editors, Spine. Most recently, Dr. Wiesel served as senior editor for the second edition of Operative Techniques in Orthopaedic Surgery, a four-volume instructional manual released in 2016.
An active researcher, Dr. Wiesel has presented at many national and international conferences, and published widely with many academic articles, books and chapters to his credit.
Dr. Wiesel's Philosophy of Care
Throughout my career, I have focused on treating my patients as if they were members of my family. No matter what type of spinal disorder someone may have, my mission is always the same: Isolate the the problem, find the right diagnosis, and then come up with the most appropriate therapy to fix it. While surgery may be the ultimate answer, I always try the most conservative approach first.
Clinical areas of focus
- Cervical Disc Disease
- Cervical Spine Fusion
- Complex Spine Deformities
- Degenerative Spine Conditions
- Disc Replacement
- Lumbar Spine Fusion
- Myelopathy Surgery
- Robotic Spine Surgery
- Spine Fracture
- Spine Revision
Conditions and procedures
Conditions I treat
- Abnormal Vertebrae
- Absent Vertebrae
- Bulging Disc
- Cauda Equina Syndrome
- Cervical Bone Spur
- Cervical Compression Fracture
- Cervical Deformity
- Cervical Disc Degeneration
- Cervical Disc Disease
- Cervical Disc Displacement
- Cervical Herniated Disc
- Cervical Radiculopathy
- Cervical Spinal Stenosis
- Cervical Spine Fracture
- Coccyx Fracture
- Coccyx Injury
- Complex Spine Deformities
- Compression Fracture
- Congenital Malformation Of The Spine
- Congenital Scoliosis
- Degenerative Spine Conditions
- Failed Back Surgery Syndrome
- Flatback Syndrome Post Harrington Rods
- Foot Drag
- Herniated Disc
- Intraspinal Abscess
- Junctional Kyphosis
- Kyphosis
- Lumbar Scoliosis
- Lumbar Spine Stress Fracture
- Lumbosacral Plexus Lesions
- Lumbosacral Radiculopathy
- Meningioma Of The Spine
- Myelopathy
- Neck Arthritis
- Neurogenic Claudication
- Neuromuscular Scoliosis
- Post Laminectomy Kyphosis
- Post Laminectomy Syndrome
- Ruptured Intervertebral Disc
- Scheuermann's Disease
- Sciatica
- Scoliosis
- Spina Bifida
- Spinal Abscess
- Spinal Cord Compression
- Spinal Schwannoma
- Spinal Stenosis
- Spine Arthritis
- Spine Deformities
- Spine Deformity
- Spine Fracture
- Spine Osteoarthritis
- Spine Tumor
- Spondyloarthropathy
- Spondylolisthesis
- Spondylosis
- Spondylosis With Myelopathy
- Tarlov Cyst
- Tethered Spinal Cord Syndrome
- Thoracic Herniated Disc
- Vascular Malformations Of The Spine
- Vertebral Epiphysitis
Procedures I perform
- Anterior Vertebral Body Tethering
- Artificial Disc Replacement Surgery In The Cervical Spine
- Artificial Disc Replacement Surgery In The Lumbar Spine
- Back Surgery
- Cervical Decompression
- Cervical Laminoplasty
- Cervical Laminotomy
- Cervical Spine Fusion
- Cervical Spine Revision
- Cervical Spine Steroid Injection
- Cervical Spine Surgery
- Complex Spine Surgery
- Cordotomy
- Craniocervical Junction Surgery
- Decompression Laminectomy
- Disc Arthroplasty
- Disc Replacement
- Disc Surgery
- Diskectomy
- Endoscopic Spine Surgery
- Epidural Injection
- Extreme Lateral Interbody Fusion
- Facet Injection
- Facet Surgery
- Growing Rods
- Instrumented Anterior Cervical Discectomy, Fusion (ACDF)
- Interspinous Device Placement
- Kyphoplasty
- Laminectomy
- Laminoplasty
- Lateral Access Spine Surgery
- Low Back Surgery
- Lumbar Spine Fusion
- Microdiscectomy
- Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
- Myelopathy Surgery
- Occipito Cervical Fusion
- Posterior Cervical Laminectomy And Fusion
- Posterior Lumbar Laminectomy
- Robotic Spine Surgery
- Sacroiliac Joint Block
- Sacroiliac Joint Fusion
- Sacroiliac Joint Surgery
- Scoliosis Surgery
- Spinal Abscess Surgery
- Spinal Cord Surgery
- Spinal Cyst Removal
- Spinal Dural Graft
- Spinal Tethering For Scoliosis
- Spine Deformity Correction Surgery
- Spine Fusion
- Spine Microsurgery
- Spine Reconstruction
- Spine Revision
- Spine Stapling
- Spondylectomy
- Spondylosis Surgery
- Spondylosyndesis
- Surgery For Sciatica
- Thoracic Laminectomy
- Thoracic Spine Fusion
- Vertebrae Surgery
- Vertebral Stapling
- Vertebroplasty
Practice locations
Distance from Change LocationEnter your Location
3800 Reservoir Road Northwest Pasquerilla Healthcare Center Ground Fl Washington, DC, 20007
202-444-8766Fax 202-444-7804
Insurance
MedStar Health accepts most major health insurance plans. If you are uncertain as to whether your individual health insurance plan is accepted at MedStar Health, please call your insurance company.
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List of insurance plans we accept
- Kaiser Permanente Medicare Advantage Signature and Select (aka Senior Advantage)
- Blue Choice Advantage & Healthy Blue (HMO, POS)
- UnitedHealthcare and AARP Medicare Complete Plans/ UHC Group Medicare Advantage Plans HMO, POS, PPO
- United Healthcare Options (PPO) (includes Empire PPO, GEHA, Compass Rose)
- Kaiser Permanente Select
- Kaiser Permanente Medicare Plus (Medicare Supplemental Plan)
- UHC Community Plan of MD
- Kaiser Permanente Flexible Choice POS
- Kaiser Permanente Signature
- Kaiser Permanente Signature-Added Choice
- Medicare Fee for Service
- Kaiser Virginia Premier
- Kaiser PermanenteSelect-Added Choice
- Private Health Care Systems (PHCS) (PPO)
- Kaiser MD Medicaid MCO
- CFBCBS EPO
- CFBCBS Federal Employee Program (Std/Basic PPO/Blue Focus)
- UnitedHealthcare Medicare Adv/Special Needs Plans
- Aetna Innovations: HMO & EPO Plus
- Select HMO/HealthFund/Health Network
- Aetna HMO
- Open POS II
- Innovation Health: Open POS Plus
- Choice POS & Choice POS II
- Aetna Managed Choice Open Access (POS)
- Open EPO Plus
- Opoen HMO Option
- Open HMO
- Innovation Health: POS
- Aetna HMO-Open Access/Select OA/HealthFund/Health Network Option OA
- Innovation Health: Open Network Only Plus
- Aetna Elect Choice/ Open Access (POS)
- Innovation Health: POS Plus
- Aetna Managed Choice (POS)
- Innovation Health: PPO
- Aetna Open Choice (PPO)
- Innovation Health: Indemnity
- Aetna Traditional Choice (PPO)
- BlueChoice Open Access
- CFBCBS Blue Choice Opt Out Open Access
- HealthyBlue PPO
- CFBSBC Blue Preferred PPO
- Choice Fund PPO
- PPO and PPO Plus
- CIGNA EPO
- POS OA & OA Plus
- Network OA
- CIGNA HMO Open Access (OA)
- United Healthcare Choice
- Coventry Health Care National Network PPO
- Aetna Worker's Compensation Network
- Mamsi Life & Health (Indem./PPO)
- Optimum Choice Preferred (POS) & OCI Direct (HMO)
- M.D. IPA Preferred (POS)
- M.D. IPA (HMO)
- United Student Resources
- United Healthcare Choice Plus
- United Healthcare Select Plus (POS)
- United Healthcare Select HMO - EPO/NPP
- MedStar Select (MedStar Associates' Plan)
- MedStar Family Choice - Maryland Health Choice
- Tricare for Life (Medicare Supplemental Plan)
- Tricare Prime
- FIRST HEALTH
- First Health PPO
- Coventry of Delaware HMO/PPO
- Coventry Health Care of Virginia
- CIGNA Indemnity
- Great-West Healthcare POS/CIGNA
- CIGNA POS/Network POS
- CIGNA HMO & Network (HMO)
- CFBCBS (NCA) Indemnity
- CFBCBS Maryland Indemnity or PPO
- CFBCBS Maryland Point of Service Plan (MPOS)
- CFBCBS Blue Choice Opt Out Plus Open Access (POS)
- CFBCBS BlueChoice HMO
- Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO & PPO Plans
- Aetna Student Health Insurance
- Aetna Quality Point of Service (POS)
- Aetna Elect Choice/ EPO (Aetna Health Fund) Innovation Health: Network Only Plus
Education
Board Certification: American Board of Orthopaedic Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery
Residency Program: University of Pennsylvania Hospitals (1976)
Medical School: University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine ()
Awards
- Volvo Award Acromed Award Outstanding Clinical Paper, The International Society for the Study of the Lumbar Spine AOA Honor Medical Society, Georgetown
Hospital affiliations
News and publications
- Book - 07/31/2015 - Wiesel, S.W.:Operative Techniques in Orthopedic Surgery (Four Volume). Philadelphia, PA: Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins, 2015.