Neurosurgeons, orthopedic surgeons, pain management physicians and rehabilitation specialists are committed to helping you make an informed decision on a spinal treatment plan that is right for you.
Wayne Olan, MD
Director of Minimally Invasive Neurosurgery at the GW Spine and Pain Center
Wayne Olan, MD is board-certified in radiology, the Director of Interventional and Endovascular Neurosurgery, and an Associate Professor at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. His clinical and research interests involve the endovascular treatment of cerebrovascular disorders, including the treatment of cerebral aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, and the treatment of stroke. He performs aneurysm coiling, extra-cranial and intra-cranial artery stenting, embolization of arteriovenous malformation (AVM), and embolization of head/neck tumors. In addition, he has interests in the interventional treatment of spinal disorders.
Dr. Olan earned his medical degree from the Chicago Medical School. He completed residencies at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center in the Bronx, N.Y., and a fellowship in Neuroradiology at The George Washington University Medical Center.
Dr. Olan has published extensively on minimally invasive spinal interventions, endovascular treatments, and cervical abnormalities. He instructs on minimally invasive spinal techniques and is involved in the development of many devices in the spinal arena. He has also published and lectured on cerebrovascular abnormalities, especially revascularization, and stroke prevention and treatment.
He continues as a consulting physician to the National Institutes of Health and is a member of many professional societies including the Radiological Society of North America, American College of Radiology, American Medical Association, Medical Society of District of Columbia, American Society of Neuroradiology and American Society of Spine Radiology.
Michael K. Rosner, MD
Vice Chairman, Department of Neurosurgery; Board-Certified Neurosurgeon
Michael K. Rosner, MD, is Vice Chairman of the Department of Neurosurgery and a board-certified neurosurgeon. He is also a Professor of Neurosurgery at The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Areas of clinical interest include complex spine disorders such as scoliosis and kyphoscoliosis; degenerative spinal pathology; spinal motion preservation and disc replacement; revision spine surgery and deformity correction; spinal oncology, minimally invasive spine surgery and neurotrauma.
Dr. Rosner holds a medical degree from Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. After medical school, he completed a neurosurgery residency at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, as well as a fellowship in complex and reconstructive spine surgery at Northwestern University. He also served as a staff neurosurgeon at Walter Reed where he was later named Chief of Neurosurgery.
Dr. Rosner has received many research grants with a focus on spinal cord and column injuries in the active duty military population. In addition, he has also won numerous awards and has published peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters.
He is on the Executive Committee of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons/The Congress of Neurological Surgeons Spine Section. He also serves as chair-elect of the Scoliosis Research Society research committee. In addition, Dr. Rosner has been elected to the Senior Society of Neurological Surgeons.
Rachel Bratescu, MD
Orthopedic Surgeon
Rachel Bratescu, MD, is an orthopedic surgeon and member of the GW Spine and Pain Center. She is among the few surgeons in the United States who have completed formal training in the fields of both neurosurgery and orthopedics.
Dr. Bratescu received her medical degree from Georgetown University. She then completed an orthopedic surgery residency at Houston Methodist, after which she received dual fellowship training in orthopedics and neurosurgical spine surgery from NYU Langone with an emphasis on complex and revision spinal deformity, minimally invasive surgery and robotic surgery.
Dr. Bratescu became the first orthopedic surgeon, as well as the first female, to be admitted to and complete the prestigious neurosurgery spine fellowship at Weill Cornell/NewYork-Presbyterian under the tutelage of world-renowned neurosurgeon Dr. Roger Härtl.
Dr. Bratescu has published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. Her clinical interests include minimally invasive spine surgery; the evaluation and surgical management of degenerative disorders of the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine (such as herniated discs and spinal stenosis); spine trauma; tumors and complex spine procedures including scoliosis and revision surgery.