J. Alex Thomas

J. Alex Thomas

Md

Dr. Thomas received his Bachelor of Arts in Chemistry at Duke University in 1999 (while earning 4 varsity letters for swimming) and his Doctor of Medicine from Georgetown University in 2004. He completed his neurosurgical residency at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, DC. During that residency he completed an in-folded fellowship in minimally invasive and lateral access spinal surgery. Dr. Thomas has been a pioneer in the field Lateral Single Position Surgery in which spinal fusion is performed on the front and back of the spine with the patient remaining in the lateral position. This ground-breaking technique dramatically reduces the time that a patient spends under anesthesia and thus leads to decreased risks and better outcomes.

Specialties:

  • Minimally invasive procedures of cervical and lumbar spine including discectomy, laminectomy and fusions
  • Lateral access and single position surgical techniques for spinal fusion (XLIF, Lateral ALIF
  • Spinal deformity surgery
  • Cervical disc replacement
  • Spinal tumors and trauma
  • Pituitary tumors
  • Brain tumors
  • Mazor robotics

Memberships:

  • American Academy of Neurological Surgeons, Member, 2005-Present
  • Congress of Neurological Surgeons, Member, 2005-Present
  • SOLAS/SMISS, Member, 2010-Present
  • North American Spine Society, Member, 2012-Present
  • North Carolina Medical Society, Member, 2012-Present
    • President, 2022-2023

Publications:

  • Thomas JA, Watson VW, McGrail KM: Surgical management of a paraclinoid aneurysm containing a misplaced Neuroform microstent: technical case report. Neurosurgery 63:817, 2008.
  • Thomas JA, Myseros JS, Bank WO: Glossopharyngeal schwannoma in childhood: case report and treatment strategy. J Neurosurg Pediatrics 2: 130-132, 2008.
  • Thomas JA, Tredway T, Fessler RG, Sandhu FA: An alternate method for placement of C1 screws: technical report and case series. J Neurosurg Spine, 12(4):337-341 2010.
  • Pritchard CD, O’Shea TM, Siegwart DJ, Calo E, Anderson DG, Reynolds FM, Thomas JA, Slotkin JR, Woodard EJ, Langer R: An injectable thiol-acrylate poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogel for sustained release of methylprednisolone sodium succinate. Biomaterials 32(2):587-97, Jan 2011.
  • Graham A, Davis JE, Gouvernayre AJ, Thomas, JA: An Unusual Cause of Neck Pain: Acquired Chiari Malformation Leading to Brainstem Herniation and Death. The Journal of Emergency Medicine 43(6): 1000-1003, 2012.
  • Benjamin, CG, Oermann, EK, Thomas, JA, Distaso, CT, Sandhu, FA: Minimally Invasive Direct Lateral Transpsoas Approach for the Resection of a Lumbar Plexus Schwannoma: Technique Report. The Surgery Journal 2(3): e66-e69. 2016.
  • Blizzard, DJ, & Thomas, JA. MIS Single-position Lateral and Oblique Lateral Lumbar Intebody Fusion and Bilateral Pedicle Screw Fixation. Spine, 43(6), 440–446. 2018
  • Thomas, JA, Thomason, CIM, Braly, BA, Menezes, CM. Rate of failure of indirect decompression in lateral single-position surgery: clinical results. Journal of Neurosurgery Neurosurgical Focus 49(3), 2020.
  • Vincent, D, Thomas JA “Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion” in The Resident’s Guide to Spine Surgery. O’ Brien, JR, Kalantar, BS, Drazin, D, Sandhu FA (Eds). (Springer, 2020).
  • Buckland AJ, Ashayeri K, Leon C, Manning J, Eisen L, Medley M, Protopsaltis TS, Thomas JA. Single position circumferential fusion improves operative efficiency, reduces complications and length of stay compared with traditional circumferential fusion. The Spine Journal. 2021 May;21(5):810-820.
  • Buckland AJ, Ashayeri K, Leon C, Cheng I, Thomas JA, Braly B, Kwon B, Eisen L. Anterior column reconstruction of the lumbar spine in the lateral decubitus position: anatomical and patient-related considerations for ALIF, anterior-to-psoas, and transpsoas LLIF approaches. Eur Spine J. 2022 Mar 2.
  • Thomson AE, Thomas JA, Ye I, Olexa J, Miseo V, Buraimoh K, Cavanaugh DL, Koh EY, Ludwig SC. Surgical fixation of pathologic and traumatic spinal fractures using single position surgery technique in lateral decubitus position. Eur Spine J. 2022 Feb 5. Epub ahead of print.
  • Ashayeri K, Leon C, Tigchelaar S, Fatemi P, Follett M, Cheng I, Thomas JA, Medley M, Braly B, Kwon B, Eisen L, Protopsaltis TS, Buckland AJ. Single position lateral decubitus anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) and posterior fusion reduces complications and improves perioperative outcomes compared with traditional anterior-posterior lumbar fusion. Spine J. 2022 Mar;22(3):419-428.
  • Guiroy A, de Andrada-Pereira B, Camino-Willhuber G, Berjano P, Lamartina C, Buckland AJ, Gagliardi M, Khajavi K, Turner JD, Thomas JA, Menezes C, Lehman R Jr, Uribe J, Asghar J. Setting for single position surgery: survey from expert spinal surgeons. Eur Spine J. 2022 Sep;31(9):2239-2247.
  • Khajavi K, Menezes CM, Braly BA, Thomas JA. Postoperative spinal alignment comparison of lateral versus supine patient position L5-S1 anterior lumbar interbody fusion. Eur Spine J. 2022 Sep;31(9):2248-2254.
  • Thomas, J.A., Menezes, C., Buckland, A.J. et al.Single-position circumferential lumbar spinal fusion: an overview of terminology, concepts, rationale and the current evidence base. Eur Spine J 31, 2167–2174 (2022).
  • Thomson AE, Thomas JA, Ye I, Olexa J, Miseo V, Buraimoh K, Cavanaugh DL, Koh EY, Ludwig SC. Surgical fixation of pathologic and traumatic spinal fractures using single position surgery technique in lateral decubitus position. Eur Spine J. 2022 Sep;31(9):2212-2219.
  • Buckland AJ, Leon C, Ashayeri K, Cheng I, Alex Thomas J, Braly B, Kwon B, Maglaras C, Eisen L. Spinal exposure for anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) in the lateral decubitus position: anatomical and technical considerations. Eur Spine J. 2022 Sep;31(9):2188-2195.
  • Ashayeri K, Alex Thomas J, Braly B, O’Malley N, Leon C, Cheng I, Kwon B, Medley M, Eisen L, Protopsaltis TS, Buckland AJ. Lateral decubitus single position anterior-posterior (AP) fusion shows equivalent results to minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion at one-year follow-up. Eur Spine J. 2022 Sep;31(9):2227-2238.
  • Guiroy, Alfredo MD, Thomas, J. Alex MD, Bodon, Gergely MD,  Patel, Ashish MD, Rogers, Michael MD,  Smith, William MD, Seale, Justin MD,  Camino-Willhuber, Gastón MD,  Menezes, Cristiano M. MD,  Galgano, Michael MD,  Asghar, Jahangir MD. Single-Position Transpsoas Corpectomy and Posterior Instrumentation in the Thoracolumbar Spine for Different Clinical Scenarios. Operative Neurosurgery  November 28, 2022.
  • Buckland AJ, Braly BA, O’Malley NA, Ashayeri K, Protopsaltis TS, Kwon B, Cheng I, Thomas JA. Lateral Decubitus Single Position Anterior Posterior Surgery Improves Operative Efficiency, Improves Perioperative Outcomes, and Maintains Radiological Outcomes Comparable with Tradition Anterior Posterior Fusion at Minimum 2-Year Follow-up. Spine J. 2023 Jan 11:S1529-9430(23)

Presentations:

  • Thomas, JA, et al. Incidental Chiari I malformations requiring surgical correction: experience at Children’s National Medical Center over one decade. Podium presentation at Pediatric Scientific Session, 2007 AANS Annual Meeting.
  • Thomas JA, Tredway T, Fessler RG, Sandhu FA: An alternative method for placement of C1 screws: technical report and case series. Poster presentation at 2008 AANS/CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves Annual Meeting.
  • Thomas JA, Sandhu FA: Minimally-invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion for the correction of low-grade degenerative spondylolisthesis. Poster presentation at 2008 AANS/CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves Annual Meeting.
  • Thomas, JA: Minimally Invasive Techniques in Patients with Spinal Trauma. Presented at 25th Annual Trauma and Emergency Symposium, Wilmington, NC, February 15th, 2014.
  • Thomas, JA: The Concussion Controversy. Presented at 26th Annual Trauma and Emergency Symposium, Wilmington, NC, February 14th
  • Thomas, JA: Comparison Of Fluoro-guided Vs. Robotic-guided Single-position Lateral Interbody Fusion And Posterior Fixation – A Preliminary Report. Presented at Society for Minimally-invasive Spinal Surgery (SMISS) Global Forum, Las Vegas, NV, November 2015.
  • Thomas, JA: MIS single-position anterior interbody fusion and bilateral pedicle screw fixation: feasibility and perioperative results. Presented at Society for Lateral Access Surgery (SOLAS) Annual Meeting, Carslbad, CA, March 2016.
  • Thomas, JA: MIS Single-Position Anterior Interbody Fusion and Bilateral Pedicle Screw Fixation: Feasibility and Perioperative Results. Present at North Carolina Spine Society Meeting, August 2016.
  • Thomas, JA: Single-position lateral lumbar interbody fusion and percutaneous pedicle screw fixation allows for adequate correction of spinal sagittal imbalance. Presented at Society for Minimally-invasive Spinal Surgery (SMISS) Global Forum, Las Vegas NV, October 2016 as well as at Society for Lateral Access Surgery (SOLAS) Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA, March 2017.
  • Thomas, JA: Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion performed in the lateral decubitus position (LALIF) is a novel single-position solution for spinal fusion at L5/S1. Presented at SOLAS Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA, May 2018.
  • Bagley, JL, Thomas, JA: Placement of retroperitoneal wound drain after XLIF may decrease the incidence and duration of postoperative thigh symptoms. Presented at SOLAS Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA, May 2018.
  • Thomas, JA: Lateral single position surgery can be successfully employed for the treatment of degenerative lumbar scoliosis. Presented at SOLAS Annual Meeting, Miami, FL, May 2019.
  • Sembrano, J, Thomas, JA, Siljander, B: Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion with Percutaneous Pedicle Screw Fixation (LLIF-PPS): Are We Getting the Sagittal Alignment Right? Presented at SOLAS Annual Meeting, Miami, FL, May 2019.
  • Thomas, JA: Rate of failure of indirect decompression in lateral single-position surgery. Accepted for presentation at SOLAS Annual Meeting, Chicago IL, May 2020.
  • Khajavi, K, Menezes, CM, Braly, BA, Thomas, JA Spinal Alignment Comparison for Lateral Versus Supine L5-S1 ALIF in the Treatment of Patients with Degenerative Conditions of the Lumbar Spine. “Best Paper” award at Society for Minimally Invasive Spinal Surgery (SMISS) Global Forum, 2020.
  • Thomas, JA Minimally Invasive Treatment of Thoracolumbar Trauma. Presented at the 18th Brazilian Spine Congress, Fortaleza Brazil, May 2022.
  • Thomas, JA Complication avoidance in XLIF. Presented at the 18th Brazilian Spine Congress, Fortaleza Brazil, May 2022.
  • Thomas, JA Vascular Complications in Anterior Spine Surgery. Presented at the 18th Brazilian Spine Congress, Fortaleza Brazil, May 2022.
  • Thomas, JA Lateral single position anterior posterior (AP) lumbar fusion outperforms conventional AP fusion with patient repositioning at 2-year minimum follow up. Presented at SMISS Global Forum, Las Vegas, NV, October 2022.
  • Thomas, JA ALIF in the lateral decubitus position. Presented at the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgery Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV, March 2023.
  • Thomas, JA Complication management in Lateral ALIF. Presented at European Spine Journal Meet the Experts, Lisbon, Portugal, April 2023.
  • Thomas, JA Lateral Single Position Surgery with hyperlordotic implants. Presented at European Spine Journal Meet the Experts, Lisbon, Portugal, April 2023.
  • Thomas, JA Thoracolumbar Corpectomy. Presented at European Spine Journal Meet the Experts at Melbourne SpineWeek, Melbourne, AUS, May 2023.

Achievements:

  • Society of Lateral Access Surgery (SOLAS) Lateral Pioneer Award Winner, 2023
  • NHRMC’s Chair of Neuroscience Department
  • North American Spine Society Secretary 2019-2020
  • “String of Pearls” Award Winner, 2010, for excellence in teaching and outstanding contribution to the education of 3rd year medical students, Georgetown University School of Medicine
  • “String of Pearls” Award Nominee, 2005-2006, for excellence in resident education of medical students, Georgetown University
  • Stacy L. Rollins, Jr. MD Award in Neurosurgery, June 2004, for outstanding performance as a fourth-year medical student on the Neurosurgery Service, Department of Neurosurgery, Georgetown University
  • Four Varsity Letters, Swimming, Duke University, 1996-1999
  • National Science Foundation Summer Research Fellowship, Washington University, St. Louis, Summer 1998
  • Howard Hughes Research Fellowship, Duke University Department of Microbiology, 1999
  • Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Honor Roll, Swimming, Duke University, 1996-1999

Activities / Interests

  • Kiteboarding, Climbing, Mountaineering, Fishing, Swimming, Fluent in Spanish

Expert Care Awaits

Our Other Specialists