From evolving surgical techniques and emerging technologies to practical strategies for practice, NASS 2026 brings the surgical spine community together in San Antonio.
NASS 2026 arrives in San Antonio with a program built around the changing practice of surgical spine care. Across three days of Annual Meeting programming, attendees can explore evolving surgical techniques, emerging technologies, and the practical challenges of practice, with time to reconnect with colleagues from across the spine community.
The range of options also presents a familiar challenge: deciding where to spend your time. Program Chair, Paul Saiz, MD, has watched Annual Meeting’s scope grow considerably since attending his first course more than 20 years ago.
“Since my first NASS course in 2002, spine care knowledge has expanded dramatically,” Saiz said. “Advances in technology, coding and billing, practice logistics, AI, and surgical techniques have made it increasingly difficult to stay current in every area. Fortunately, the NASS course has evolved to cover the topics most relevant to spine surgeons.”
That expansion will be on display when the spine community gathers in San Antonio for NASS 2026, October 14-17. This year’s program brings together surgical and clinical education with emerging technology, practice management, and opportunities to see where spine care is headed next.
Paul Saiz, MD Program Chair
Andrew Schoenfeld, MD NASS Education Council Director
A Look at What’s Changing
New approaches to spine surgery are high on other NASS leaders’ lists for 2026. NASS Education Council Director, Andrew Schoenfeld, MD, MSc, recommends exploring the meeting’s endoscopic spine surgery education.
“Endoscopy is revolutionizing how spine surgery is delivered in real time,” Schoenfeld said. “This is on par with the way the introduction of the pedicle screw changed the face of the field. This year’s meeting has several dedicated sessions and exhibits helping attendees understand the features of endoscopic spine surgery and how to apply them to practice. This includes a partnered session with Balgrist University regarding their comprehensive endoscopic educational portfolio.”
Program Chair Jack Jallo, MD, PhD, FACS, will be looking in another direction.
“I am partial to the lateral approaches symposium as this approach is changing how we address spinal issues,” Jallo said.
Jallo also makes time each year to walk the Technical Exhibition and see new technologies. Attendees will have plenty of time to follow his lead. The Technical Exhibition is open on Wednesday and Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
Jack Jallo, MD Program Chair
For Saiz, keeping current also means looking beyond surgical technique. He recommends that surgeons, particularly those early in their careers, make time for education on the business and logistical aspects of practice.
“Early in our careers as surgeons, we often focus primarily on the technical and educational aspects of practice,” he said. “I recommend also dedicating time to the business and logistical side, including coding, billing, and working with hospital organizations. These responsibilities often become a larger part of practice than many surgeons expect when they are starting out.”
The NASS Coding Course is one of his recommendations. Held Monday and Tuesday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and requiring separate registration, the course offers an intensive look at coding and billing for spine care. Saiz also points to Annual Meeting programming on practice efficiency, hospital collaboration, technology, and AI as areas that can help surgeons manage the changing demands of practice.
Alan Hilibrand, MD NASS Second Vice President
Plan Ahead, But Don’t Pack the Schedule
With so much happening throughout the week, Jallo has simple advice for first-time attendees: review the meeting’s options ahead of time.
NASS Second Vice President Alan Hilibrand, MS, agrees. “Make a plan for sessions each morning, as there’s an awful lot of opportunities for learning,” he said.
Schoenfeld recommends leaving some open space in that plan.
“The meeting can be overwhelming,” he said. “Don’t overschedule yourself. There are so many different offerings in so many different domains. It is impossible to do it all. Be sure to leave some time for socializing and personal connections!”
Those connections remain a major part of the Annual Meeting for Hilibrand, whose first NASS meeting in 1993 was small enough to fit in a hotel. He looks forward to catching up with longtime friends and colleagues each year and already has several events on his list for San Antonio.
Among them is something new for NASS 2026, the inaugural Distinguished Fellow of NASS Convocation Ceremony, which will be held on Wednesday from 5:00 to 5:45 p.m., with the Kickoff Party beginning at 5:30 p.m. Hilibrand also looks forward to connecting with recent fellows and fellowship directors at Thursday’s invite-only Prospective & Recent Fellow Networking Reception.
Schoenfeld also named the inaugural Distinguished Fellow class as something attendees should make time to see. His own can’t-miss Annual Meeting tradition is the Presidential Address Introduction.
“I love hearing about the historical paths that our Society presidents tread on the road to their current leadership role,” he said.
Bringing it Back to Practice
When the meeting ends and attendees head home from San Antonio, Schoenfeld expects the conversation to continue around the depth of surgeon-centered, innovation-focused education, and the ideas that can be applied to patient care and patient practice.
For Hilibrand, what lasts after the Annual Meeting can be summed up more simply: “The friends they saw and the new ideas they have about how their practice can be better.”
NASS 2026 will bring together both in San Antonio: new ideas from across spine care and the people the make up the spine community.
It’s not too late to register! Visit www.spine.org/am, and start making your plans to attend NASS 2026.