Spine, Neck, and Back Pain

Spine, neck and back pain do not need to be your constant companion. We can help you achieve lasting relief from issues such as bulging and slipped discs, compressed nerves, strains, and other conditions. You receive world-class care, including the latest non-surgical and surgical therapies close to home.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 636-928-WELL(9355).

Why choose us for your spine care:

• Surgical expertise: The Barnes Jewish St. Peters Neurosurgery Clinic offers patients the latest technologies and techniques, many developed by our board-certified surgeons.
• Minimally invasive treatments: we offer methods that are often less invasive and more effective, with faster recovery times.
• Non-surgical treatments: Surgery is not always what the patient requires. We evaluate each patient and provide a recommendation that fits their conditions.
• Comprehensive care: We specialize in specific types of disorders as well as specific locations within the spine, such as the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar areas.
• Nationally accredited program: WashU Medicine provides Neurosurgery Clinic patients with access to some of the highest levels of clinical spine care available in the U.S.
• Easy access: You deserve the neck and back pain care you need when you need it. This is why we often see patients within two business days.

“All I can say to Drs. Pennicooke and Vellimana is a big thank you, and that I’m very grateful for their kindness, attentiveness and skill,” Yury says. “I’m extremely pleased and grateful to the doctors and the entire team. – Yuri, Barnes-Jewish St. Peter’s Hospital Neurosurgery Center patient”

Conditions we treat

• Back pain: Low back pain may be a symptom of many different causes including overuse, injury, degeneration of the vertebrae, infection, a tumor, obesity, poor muscle tone, muscle spasm, strain, muscle tears, joint problems, smoking, slipped disk or disease.
• Degenerative disc disease: Normal changes that occur to the disc in the spinal cord as a person ages.
• Herniated disc: A tear or rupture of a disc in the spinal canal that causes pain.
• Myelopathy: A disorder that results in severe compression of the spinal cord. It is most commonly caused by spinal stenosis, spinal trauma and spinal infections.
• Radiculopathy: A condition due to a compressed nerve in the spine that can cause pain, numbness, tingling, or weakness in the lower back and in the neck.
• Sciatica: Pain that radiates along the path of the sciatic nerve, which originates in the lower back through your hips and buttocks and down each leg.
• Spinal stenosis: A condition in which the spinal canal narrows and pinches the nerves, resulting in back and leg pain.
• Spondylolisthesis: A vertebral malalignment, most commonly involving a bone (vertebra) slipping forward over the bone below it.

At Barnes-Jewish St. Peter’s Hospital, when more conservative treatments, such as physical therapy or medication, does not provide optimal relief, our neurosurgeons work closely together to find a solution for our patients. As a result, spine treatment is based on the patient’s specific disorder, not on the expertise of the physician who first examines the patient.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, call 636-928-WELL(9355).