Hi Brewster,
each spine condition is unique to the patient and treatment options vary. The entire spectrum of spine procedures is offered at UHN depending on patients requirements.
ie. many spine surgery clinics offer that minimally invasive foramionotomy procedure, but what they don't tell you is that those procedures have lower success rates at relieving all the pressure caused by a squashed Disc. They also are not the indication where any stenosis of the spinal canal is present.
Choosing which spine procedure to have is a very tricky balancing act for many patients as they compare the pros and cons of each one of them. There is no perfect spine procedure, they all have big downsides.
At UHN, Including the Krembil Neuroscience Centre at Toronto Western Hospital you should look for Dr. Michael Fehlings, (head of NeuroSurgery) Dr Charles Tater ( 2009 Indoctrinated into Canadian Medical Hall of Fame) although Dr. Tator does not perform Surgery anymore due to his age he is still available for consultation, Dr. M. Lozanno, and Dr. Eric Massicotte (specializing in Cervical procedures)
Also at UHN over at St. Michaels Hospital and one of my favorite Neuro Surgeons is Dr. Micheal Cusimano. His methods are more conservative than the others. He would always try to save as much of your spine as he can. You Can Google him at RateMD's, he has the highest Neuro Surgeon patient ratings in all of Canada.
I have a wealth of videos and resources that I can share with the forum that provide a solid education in spine Pathology and surgical procedures.
One good place to start is the ChiroGeek WebPage:
ChiroGeek's Home Page
Regards,
Neck-rosis