Orthopaedic Spine and Scoliosis Surgery Fellowship

The Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at the Carilion Clinic consists of 45+ Fellowship trained Orthopaedic Surgeons in an Academic Level I Trauma Center in Roanoke, VA. The Section of Spine, Scoliosis and Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery consists of 5 Fellowship Trained Spine Surgeons, 2 Pediatric Orthopaedists and one Physiatrist.  Our Section is supported by four dedicated Spine Surgical PAs and a Spine Surgical, hospital-based Nurse Practitioner.  

The Carilion Clinic - Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine (VTCSOM) Orthopaedic Spine and Scoliosis Surgery Fellowship focuses on Degenerative Spine and Spine Deformity care. This is a very high-volume fellowship. Under the direction of Jonathan Carmouche, M.D., the program at Carilion Clinic continues to grow and thrive.  While there is satellite hospital and ambulatory surgery center experience, the primary service site is Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, a regional tertiary/quaternary referral center for complex spine procedures and revisions, including but not limited to:

• Minimally invasive spine surgery including spine fusions
• Decompressions/Discectomies
• Anterior cervical discectomy with fusion
• Disc Arthroplasty
• Cervical spine reconstructions
• Pediatric and adult scoliosis and spine deformity reconstructions
• Complex osteotomies including PSO, SPO and VCR

The surgical volume and case diversity continues to increase due to our large regional catchment area and expansions to the core faculty. The vast majority of cases are elective.  Each attending has specific subspecialty areas of interest which cover the entire spectrum of orthopaedic spine surgical care.  

The Orthopaedic Surgery program is supported by Orthopaedic Surgery residents at the PGY1-4 levels and Podiatry Residents at the PGY1-3 levels.  Our program includes 2 Adult Reconstruction Fellows and 1 Hand Surgery Fellow as well as a Research Fellow.  The Spine Surgery fellow is the educational priority for the spine service.

All faculty members are fellowship trained at top programs. Dr. Carmouche completed Fellowships in Adult and Pediatric Spine and Scoliosis (Twin Cities Spine Center) and Musculoskeletal Research (University of Rochester). Dr. Vivek Natarajan completed Fellowships in Pediatric Orthopaedic Surgery (University of Pittsburg) and Spine Surgery (Oregon Health Sciences University). Dr. Mark Coggins completed Spine Surgical Training at the Carolinas Medical Center.

We offer a one-year fellowship position with high clinical volume and abundant educational and research opportunities. Fellows have protected research/academic time weekly. One publishable quality research project is expected. Outpatient Clinic experience is 1-1.5 days per week.  Conferencing is at least once per week. Residents and ACPS take first calls.

The creation of VTCSOM and what is now the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC was announced in 2007, with the inaugural medical school class beginning in August 2010. The school officially became the ninth college of Virginia Tech on July 1, 2018. This partnership between Virginia Tech and Carilion Clinic provides ample resources and opportunity for the education and research efforts of our Fellows, Residents and Medical Students.