Net Income Per Share - Computation of Basic and Diluted Income Per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended		6 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015	Jun. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015
Numerator:
Net income attributable to NuVasive, Inc.	$ 30,213	$ 10,268	$ 26,845	$ 41,828
Denominator for basic and diluted net income per share:
Weighted average common shares outstanding for basic	50,027	48,545	49,822	48,269
Dilutive potential common stock outstanding:
Weighted average common shares outstanding for diluted	53,159	51,681	52,354	51,700
Basic net income per share attributable to NuVasive, Inc.	$ 0.60	$ 0.21	$ 0.54	$ 0.87
Diluted net income per share attributable to NuVasive, Inc.	$ 0.57	$ 0.20	$ 0.51	$ 0.81
Stock Options and Employee Stock Purchase Plan [Member]
Dilutive potential common stock outstanding:
Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive effect of share-based payment arrangements	374	1,250	409	1,389
Restricted Stock Units [Member]
Dilutive potential common stock outstanding:
Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive effect of share-based payment arrangements	1,281	945	1,090	1,126
Warrants [Member]
Dilutive potential common stock outstanding:
Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive effect of share-based payment arrangements	819		409
Senior Convertible Notes [Member]
Dilutive potential common stock outstanding:
Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive effect of share-based payment arrangements	658	941	624	916