John F. Fleming, MD

Dr. Fleming’s earliest exposure to medicine came at a young age. As a child, he spent his days off school at his mother’s workplace—a chiropractor’s office on the south side of Chicago. He followed the doctor from patient to patient, noticing that he was always kind and informative, and that because of this, his patients adored him. The chiropractor listened, cared, and helped everyone that came through his door, which inspired Dr. Fleming to want to make that kind of impact someday as well. Dr. Fleming ultimately chose to specialize in orthopedic spine surgery because of its unique and profound capacity to improve the lives of his patients.

During his surgical training, Dr. Fleming was invigorated by the demand to learn and perform at the top level. He sought new challenges around every bend because he knew it would eventually pay off for his patients. Today he is specially trained in a relatively new form of minimally invasive spine surgery called the MidLIF (Midline Lumbar Interbody Fusion). It utilizes advanced imaging during the operation to decrease incision size and minimize the amount of internal surgery necessary to achieve spinal fusion. He has also had advanced training in the side-body incision technique of Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion, which avoids dissecting large amounts of muscles from the back. These options are combined with traditional open surgery to find the best-fit operation for each individual.

Even with such specialized surgical training and experience, Dr. Fleming believes in first looking at all options and tailoring a specific treatment plan for each patient—including discussion of alternative medical therapies. He feels that it’s vital to be frank and up-front about the risks and benefits of every option and that spine surgery is always a last resort after all alternatives have been explored.

Dr. Fleming joined Coastal Ortho Advanced Orthopedics in 2017 because he was impressed by how it has been a staple of the South Bay community for decades and built a reputation of trust, respect, and empathy that aligns with his values. Coastal Ortho partnered with Dr. Fleming because, among many qualities, he is well known for his experience, highly regarded surgical training, kindness, and diligence in finding the right solution for each of his patients.