Ahilan Sivaganesan, MD
Neurosurgery
Headshot of Ahilan Sivaganesan, MD
Schedule onlineCall 215-662-3340

Ahilan Sivaganesan, MD

Neurosurgery
Accepting new patients
Sees patients age 18 and up
Penn Spine Center Pennsylvania Hospital
View 2 additional locations
Schedule onlineCall 215-662-3340
Headshot of Ahilan Sivaganesan, MD
Penn Medicine Provider

About me

  • Director, Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
  • Associate Professor of Clinical Neurosurgery

When it comes to spine surgery, I believe that less is more.

When patients see a spine surgeon, they’re often afraid that they’ll end up with screws and rods in their back or neck. I view my role differently. My job is to listen. I want to understand what precisely limits your life, and what your goals are. You are more than your MRI – my priority is to learn what “success” uniquely means for you. Only then can we have a meaningful conversation about treatment options.

The first question is whether you need spine surgery at all. Most patients don’t. If you don’t need surgery, I will tell you. If you don’t need a spinal fusion, I will tell you. As the Director of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery, I specialize in outpatient procedures where the incision is the size of a thumbnail. I have expertise in endoscopic, motion-preserving, and robot-assisted procedures, and I give lectures about them around the world. But these techniques only matter if we have a clear diagnosis, and the confidence to say that surgery really is the next step.

Although I am a neurosurgeon, I received specialized training at the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) – the world’s preeminent orthopedic hospital. My research lab focuses on one simple question: how can we ensure that every spine patient gets the right treatment, at the right time, by the right person? This is what I want for my own family, and this is what I want for you. While I’m proud to offer the most cutting-edge techniques with rapid recoveries, that is not the core of my identity as a physician. A famous man once said: “The secret to patient care is to care about the patient.” That is my North Star.

 

My education and training

  • Vanderbilt University Medical CenterResidency
  • Hospital for Special SurgeryFellowship

Spoken languages

English
English

Insurance accepted

Please contact the practice and/or the member services department of your insurance company for specific details before receiving services. Providers may participate in some, but not all, products offered by a health plan; providers may also accept plans at some practice locations but not others.

Locations

PRIMARY LOCATION
215-662-3340
Learn about location
215-662-3487
Learn about location
215-829-6700
Learn about location

Penn Medicine hospital privileges

  • Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania: Has privileges to treat patients in the hospital.
  • Penn Presbyterian Medical Center: Has privileges to treat patients in the hospital.
  • Pennsylvania Hospital: Has privileges to treat patients in the hospital.
Dr. Sivaganesan is a Penn Medicine physician.

Qualifications and experience

Treatments and conditions

Research

Publications

Sarikonda A, Self DM, Lan M, Hafazalla K, Glener S, Momin A, Sami Kabani AQuraishi D, Isch EL, Fuleihan AA, Jain P, Khan A, Santos J, Dougherty C, Clark N,Evans JJ, Judy KD, Farrell CJ, Sivaganesan A Awake Versus Asleep Craniotomy for Glioma: A Comparison of Survival and Costs Using Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing , Oper Neurosurg, 30(5): 2026,653-667

Sarikonda A, Sami A, Leibold A, Thalheimer S, Ali DM, Amaravadi C, Heller J, Prasad S, Jallo J, Sharan A, Harrop J, Vaccaro AR, Sivaganesan A Can We Finally Quantify Value for Lumbar Fusions? Introducing the Operative Value Index (OVI) , Clin Spine Surg: 2026

Finoco M, Sivaganesan A, Lafage R, Passias PG, Klineberg EO, Mundis GM Jr Protopsaltis TS, Shaffrey CI, Bess S, Kim HJ, Ames CP, Schwab FJ, Smith JS, Lafage V Are there distinct patterns of clinical deficits in cervical deformity? A discriminant analysis of health-related quality of life measures , J Neurosurg Spine, 44(2): 2025,242-252

Kabani AS, Koscielski M, Goldstein J, Sielatycki JA, Riesgraf B, Hodges S Sivaganesan A Return to Work Following Novel Lumbar Total Joint Replacement , Clin Spine Surg: 2025

Sarikonda A, Quraishi D, Self DM, Glener S, Sami A, Adegbite S, Clark NJ, Tjoumakaris SI, Gooch MR, Jabbour P, Sivaganesan A Direct versus Indirect Bypass for Adult Moyamoya Disease: A Time-Driven Activity-Based Cost Analysis , Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, LA: 2025

Quraishi D, Self DM, Sarikonda A, Sami A, Glener S, Lan M, Ratan S, Chen AY, Fuleihan A, Jain P, Khan A, Santos J, Dougherty C, Isch EL, Clark N, Evans JJ, Judy KD, Farrell CJ, Sivaganesan A Machine Learning for Cost Prediction in Transsphenoidal Surgery: A Novel Application of Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing , Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, LA: 2025

Sarikonda A, Self DM, Momin A, Glener S, Sami A, Tecce E, Quraishi D, August A, Mouchtouris N, Clark NJ, Isch EL, Jallo J, Heller J, Prasad SK, Sharan A, Vaccaro AR, Harrop J, Sivaganesan A Does Elective Admission versus Emergency Department Presentation Affect Intraoperative Costs for Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion? A Time-Driven Activity-Based Cost Analysis , Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, LA: 2025

Sarikonda A, Self DM, Lan K, Hafazalla K, Glener S, Momin A, Sami A, Quraishi DA, Isch EL, Fuleihan AA, Jain P, Khan A, Santos J, Dougherty C, Clark N, Evans JJ, Judy KD, Farrell CJ, Sivaganesan A Awake versus Asleep Craniotomy for Glioma: A Comparison of Survival and Costs Using Time-Driven Activity-Based Costing , Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, LA: 2025

Sarikonda A, Chen AY, Ratan S, Quraishi D, Self DM, Glener S, Pontarelli MK, Hone A, Clark N, Prasad SK, Heller J, Sharan A, Vaccaro AR, Harrop J, Sivaganesan A Anterior versus Posterior Fusion for Multilevel Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy: A Time-Driven Activity-Based Cost Analysis , Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, Los Angeles, LA: 2025

Louie PK, Younus I, Hanks T, Lipson P, Bansal A, Fujii T, Sivaganesan A, Sethi R The new era of cost analysis in spine surgery utilizing time-driven activity based costing: a systematic review and introduction of an enabling technology value index , Spine J, 25(9): 2025,2049-2060