Neurosurgeon Avery L. Buchholz, MD, FAANS, has been named a 2026 Castle Connolly Top Doctor, marking the third year he has received the honor. The designation places him among the roughly 7 percent of licensed U.S. physicians selected annually as Castle Connolly Top Doctors within their specialties and regions. For patients navigating complex spine conditions, the recognition signals that a physician has passed a peer-driven vetting process that evaluates medical education, training, hospital appointments, and disciplinary history.
Dr. Buchholz is a board-certified neurosurgeon and spine specialist at Capital Spine and Pain Institute, an interdisciplinary practice focused on minimally invasive spine care and targeted pain management. The repeat honor matters because it reflects sustained performance rather than a one-time achievement. Castle Connolly notes that doctors cannot pay to be selected; nominations are open to all board-certified MDs, DOs, and DPMs, and honorees are chosen by a physician-led research team. That structure gives the award weight as an independent marker of clinical reputation.
Dr. Buchholz treats a range of complex spine disorders, including adult spinal deformities, scoliosis, degenerative disc disease, spinal stenosis, spondylolisthesis, and spinal trauma. His approach prioritizes evidence-based care, with conservative, non-surgical treatment protocols used whenever appropriate. When surgery is necessary, he tailors plans to minimize tissue disruption, reduce recovery times, and optimize outcomes. Key procedures include minimally invasive lumbar discectomy and laminectomy, robotic-assisted spinal fusion and instrumentation, complex adult spinal deformity and scoliosis reconstruction, cervical artificial disc replacement, motion-preservation spinal surgery, and image-guided spinal decompression.
His training further supports the significance of the designation. Dr. Buchholz earned his medical degree at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, completed neurological surgery residency at the Medical University of South Carolina, and pursued a specialized clinical fellowship in complex spinal deformity and pediatric scoliosis surgery at the University of Virginia. He is a Fellow of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and has authored numerous peer-reviewed publications and book chapters on spinal surgery outcomes, biomechanics, and surgical safety.
The Castle Connolly Top Doctors list is published at castleconnolly.com and through various print and online partner publications, giving the recognition broad visibility. For a practice like Capital Spine and Pain Institute, that exposure can reinforce referrals and patient confidence in a field where choosing a surgeon is a high-stakes decision. The third consecutive selection also suggests consistency in peer regard, which may matter to patients comparing complex surgical options.
