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Spine Surgeon in Indiana
Marc Greenberg, MD is a fellowship-trained orthopedic spine surgeon in Fort Wayne, Indiana, who provides consultations and second opinions through Orthopaedics Northeast. Choosing any spine surgeon should include verifying fellowship training, connecting symptoms and examination findings to the actual imaging, considering appropriate nonsurgical care, and discussing less invasive or motion-preserving options when they fit the diagnosis and anatomy.
Physician profile
Marc Greenberg, MD
Fellowship-trained orthopedic spine surgeon in Fort Wayne
- Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine — Medical Degree (MD)
- The Johns Hopkins Hospital — Orthopedic Surgery Residency
- Brown University — Spine Surgery Fellowship
11136 Parkview Circle Dr, Fort Wayne, IN 46845
Appointments: (260) 484-8551
An Indiana patient looking for a spine surgeon is usually trying to answer two questions: whether surgery is actually needed, and who to trust with the decision. This page introduces the surgeon behind this practice and how he works. Marc Greenberg, MD is a fellowship-trained orthopedic spine surgeon who practices in Fort Wayne. His evaluations are built from the symptoms, the examination, and the actual imaging, and they are honest about the many situations in which surgery is not the answer. Second opinions are a core part of the practice for patients who want an independent review before a consequential decision.
What Should Matter When You Choose a Spine Surgeon
Searching for a spine surgeon in Indiana returns a long list of names. The list itself tells you very little. What actually predicts a good experience is narrower:
- Fellowship training in spine surgery. Residency teaches orthopedic or neurological surgery broadly; a spine fellowship is a dedicated year focused on the spine, including exposure to the techniques a general training program may not cover.
- A diagnosis before a recommendation. Your symptoms, your examination, and your imaging should all point to the same problem. An MRI finding alone is not a surgical indication — many adults have abnormal imaging without symptoms.
- Non-surgical options taken seriously. For most degenerative spine conditions, structured non-surgical care comes first. A surgeon should be able to explain what has been tried, what has not, and why surgery is or is not the right next step.
- A range of surgical options. When surgery is appropriate, the operation should fit the problem — from endoscopic decompression and microdiscectomy to cervical disc replacement and fusion when genuinely needed. Ask why the recommended operation fits and which reasonable alternatives were considered.
- A straight answer about uncertainty. Honest surgeons talk about what surgery cannot fix, what recovery actually involves, and when waiting is reasonable.
Our guide to choosing a spine surgeon covers these questions in more depth, including specific questions to ask at a consultation.
Training and Background
Marc Greenberg, MD earned his medical degree at Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, completed orthopedic surgery residency at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, and completed spine surgery fellowship at Brown University. His fellowship included minimally invasive and endoscopic spine techniques, and his practice includes motion-preserving surgery and robotic- and navigation-assisted fusion.
That training shapes how the practice approaches decisions: the technique follows the diagnosis, not the other way around.
He practices in Fort Wayne — Indiana’s second-largest city — through Orthopaedics Northeast, in partnership with Parkview Health. More background is on the about page and the Fort Wayne spine surgeon page.
What Dr. Greenberg Treats, and the Operations He Performs
The practice evaluates many common adult degenerative and structural spine conditions: herniated discs in the neck and low back, lumbar radiculopathy and sciatica, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, cervical radiculopathy and myelopathy, SI joint dysfunction, and symptoms that persist after prior spine surgery. If you are weighing an operation someone else has proposed, the do I really need back surgery framework is a useful starting point.
When surgery is appropriate, the operations performed include:
- Microdiscectomy — removal of herniated disc material pressing on a nerve root, for arm or leg symptoms that match the imaging.
- Laminectomy — decompression of the spinal canal for stenosis. For many people with lumbar stenosis and no instability, decompression can be performed without fusion; the decision depends on alignment, instability, deformity, and prior surgery.
- ACDF — anterior cervical discectomy and fusion, the established operation for cervical disease that requires stabilization.
- Cervical disc replacement — a motion-preserving alternative to fusion for selected cervical disc disease.
- TLIF and related fusion procedures — stabilization when instability, deformity, or certain revision situations genuinely require it, including robotic- and navigation-assisted techniques.
- Endoscopic decompression — camera-assisted surgery through a narrow working channel for selected patterns of nerve compression. Candidacy is specific and depends on the anatomy of the problem.
The point of offering a range is that the operation fits the problem. Fusion is the right operation for the right problem, and the wrong default for everything else.
What a Second Opinion Here Includes
A second opinion is a structured review, not a formality. Coordinate secure transfer of the actual MRI or CT images (the images themselves, not only the written report), the proposed surgical plan, and records of prior treatment with the office. Dr. Greenberg reviews the imaging personally, performs a neurological examination, and gives a candid read: whether the proposed operation matches the problem, whether a smaller or motion-preserving option should be considered, and whether surgery is needed at all. Sometimes the most useful outcome of the visit is learning you do not need an operation. A confirmed plan is a better plan, and a plan that does not hold up under independent review is better discovered before surgery than after.
What Spine Surgery Costs in Indiana
Price varies more than most patients expect — by procedure, by facility, and by insurance contract. Indiana hospitals are required to publish negotiated prices, which makes it possible to compare real numbers rather than estimates. Our cost of spine surgery in Indiana guide walks through the figures and the specific questions to ask your insurer before scheduling. For a specific example, see what a laminectomy costs with insurance, and what Indiana hospital price data actually shows.
Coverage and out-of-pocket cost depend on the procedure, facility, network, medical-necessity rules, and plan terms. Confirm benefits and estimates directly with your health plan and the treating facility before scheduling.
Why Patients Travel Within Indiana
Most spine care is — and should be — local. Physical therapy, injections, and routine follow-up work best close to home. Patients tend to travel for a narrower set of reasons:
- A second opinion before a major operation. A proposed multilevel fusion, a revision of prior surgery, or a recommendation that does not sit right is worth an independent review. See spine surgery second opinions in Indiana.
- Specific techniques. Not every technique is available in every community. Patients travel for evaluation of endoscopic spine surgery and cervical disc replacement when those approaches may fit their problem.
- Complex or revision problems. Prior surgery that did not relieve symptoms, deformity, or multilevel disease benefits from a surgeon who regularly handles those decisions.
Whether travel makes sense depends on the problem. For many conditions, the honest advice is to complete non-surgical care locally first.
Planning a Visit From Elsewhere in Indiana
Fort Wayne sits in northeast Indiana, roughly two hours from Indianapolis, ninety minutes from South Bend, and within a morning’s drive of most of the northern half of the state.
The office is located at Orthopaedics Northeast, 11136 Parkview Circle Dr, Fort Wayne, IN 46845. Scheduling questions can be directed to (260) 484-8551.
Patients traveling for a consultation should confirm ahead of time:
- What imaging and records to bring, so the visit produces an actual answer
- Whether an in-person examination is required before any recommendation
- The expected care setting if surgery is recommended
- Whether follow-up can be coordinated with clinicians closer to home
- Which symptoms should prompt evaluation sooner rather than a scheduled visit
Details like scheduling, insurance participation, and visit format are confirmed through the clinical and scheduling process rather than promised on a website. Start with the new-patient request for contact and routing information only; do not submit medical details through the public form.
Scheduling a Consultation
Whether you are looking for a first opinion on symptoms that are not settling, or a second opinion on an operation someone else has proposed, the next step is a conversation. Call (260) 484-8551 to schedule a consultation or second opinion with Dr. Greenberg.
Related reading: spine surgery in Indiana · cost of spine surgery in Indiana · areas served
When to seek urgent care
Call 911 or go to the emergency department right away if you have any of the following:
- Loss of bowel or bladder control, or new difficulty urinating
- Numbness in the groin, buttocks, or inner thighs (saddle anesthesia)
- Rapidly worsening weakness in one or both legs
- New clumsiness in the hands — buttons, handwriting, dropping things
- Unsteadiness, imbalance, or falls when walking
- Rapidly progressive weakness or numbness in the arms or legs
These can be signs of a problem that needs emergency treatment.
This is general educational information, not medical advice. A clinical evaluation is the only way to know what’s right for you.