Dr. Joseph Anthony Petronio, MD

I cannot say enough wonderful things about Dr. Petonio. From the moment he walks into the room, you can tell he truly cares about his patients and their families. He consistently goes above and beyond to make sure everyone feels heard, understood, and supported during what can often be a very stressful time. His bedside manner is exceptional. He takes the time to explain things clearly, answers every question with patience, and never makes you feel rushed. What truly stands out is the rapport he builds not only with patients but with their families as well. He understands that neurosurgical care affects the entire family and treats everyone with compassion and respect. Dr. Petronio is especially remarkable with pediatric patients. He has a natural ability to connect with children, helping them feel safe and comfortable even in difficult situations. Watching the trust he builds with young patients and the reassurance he provides to their parents is truly inspiring. His skill,… dedication, and genuine kindness make an incredible difference in the lives of the patients he cares for. We are incredibly grateful for the expertise and compassion he brings to every interaction. I would highly recommend Dr. Petronio to anyone in need of a neurosurgeon.

Dr Petronio is the most amazing, intelligent but humble physician. He doesn’t leave a stone unturned when looking for a diagnosis He has a great bedside manner with the patient. We travel hours to see him and are happy that he is on my child’s medical team.

Dr Petronio is an amazing neurosurgeon! He has a wonderful bedside manner with my daughter. I can't say enough great things about Dr. Petronio and his staff at Childrens hospital.

We love Dr petronio!! We saw him when my daughter was 6 weeks old and she is now 9 and we will only see him.. He takes the time to answer any and all questions.. He immediately knew what was wrong with my daughter.. It is very rare to find a Dr that has amazing bedside manners and is such an amazing dr.. We travel over 7 hours to see him every year... We love this man. HE IS TRULY A GIFT!

He takes time to answer questions and listen to concerns. He relates and engages with his patients. He will not leave a stone unturned when searching for an answer. My child has been seeing him for several years and he never disappoints! He has done multiple surgeries and would not want anyone else operating on my child.

Amazing physician! Best in the business! We are extremely grateful for his care and expertise! Connects with my child during every visit and hospital stay.

Our child was turned down by Dr. Petronio, when we tried to enroll her into the CNS tumor program. Prior to that, she was seen at Gillette, where we were lied to that she had a tethered spinal cord. When we brought opinions of neurosurgeons from other hospitals around the country to the Gillette's dr., he admitted that he had been lying, promised to investigate the child's brain tumor, which he had not told us about, and to transfer her care to the Ch's of MN. While we were waiting for the MRI order, the Gillette dr. lied again in his clinical notes and terminated the child as a patient, accusing us of "non-adherence" (he would not explain to what, and later removed that letter from her medical record and did a number of other illegal alterations to the record),. When we tried to enroll the child into the CNS tumor program on our own, we were advised by Petronio's secretary:" Doctors know each other. They talk to each other." So, perhaps, dr.Petronio can perform technically, but his… integrity is definitely in question, if he would deny access to treatment to a child with an undiagnosed and untreated brain tumor, to do a favor to his former colleague, rather than help the child. As we have found out, there are a lot of crooked things going on at Gillette. Our experience with Petronio, who used to work at Gillette just confirmed it. ( KARE 11 "Medical Miracle or Medical Torture', is another example ) It is always a red flag when a doctor discourages you from getting additional opinions. We were told that we had got "too many opinions", which was the official reason for Petronio to turn our child down from the CNS program. Ironically, it was only thanks to those opinions that we had found out that the child had a brain tumor. In addition, had we not sought those opinions, our child, who was doing fine, would have ended up with unnecessary surgery on her spinal cord, and many other surgical procedures that would have turned her into a lifetime patient of Gillette. Considering that Petronio was exposed to Gillette's culture for many years, I'd recommend getting several opinions from highly ranked in NS hospitals, before making use of Dr. Petronio's surgical skills. You may find out that your child does not need surgery at all.

Life Saver! Best Doctor Ever!

Dr. Petronio is amazing. He has all the qualities that are needed in a physician. He is open to questions and answers them honestly. We are glad we made the decision to follow up with him. We have not been disappointed.

Dr. Petronio is one of the best in the business. He places my son's shunt and has followed up for years. He is thorough and connects with my son at every visit. Trust him thoroughly.