m6-L questions
 

Hey guys. I have posted a couple threads in regards to my situation and a lot of people recommend the m6 and overseas surgery vs pro disc U.S. Surgery. I need a l5 s1 ADR and am looking for recommendations. So please feel free to tell me about your doctor and why I should consider them. Thanks and god bless!!!

Since you consolidated I am going to paste my answer from the other thread here:

If you are looking outside the U.S. Dr. Pablo Clavel (Medical tourism in Spain and spine surgery - Barcelona Spine Center) is a good choice, some reasons for recommending him:

1. He did my surgery :P which I consider a success thus far (3 levels 8 weeks in)
2. Overall reputation for quality work on this board (search the forums)
3. He has an excellent bedside manner and exhudes confidence, but not arrogance
4. The value at his clinic hits the sweet spot, cheaper than Germany but much higher quality than India or the like
5. The overall package and the people on his team - top notch, relatively easy to get a hold of and deal with
6. Barcelona - the city is awesome, arrive early
7. The number of procedures he has done, he has implanted well over a 1000 M6s and has done numerous multi-levels

I could go on but I would highly recommend you comb the forums to read patient stories, this is the best way to get a feel for his quality and what to expect. Also arrange a phone consult with him.

Good Luck,

-Jeff

Matt,

Here's my list. It comes from a combination of personal experience, reading posts on this site, and from weeks of research I did preparing my last insurance appeal.

- Pablo Clavel, Barcelona, Spain - Aside from the fact that his patients gush all over him on the internet, on Nov 25, 2009 he gave me my life back with a two level M6-C.
- Luiz Pimenta, Sao Paulo, Brazil - He is a world renowned spine research surgeon that has decades of clinical experience and is profusely cited by his peers. The few patients I've conversed with love him to death and I've never read of a bad outcome under his scalpel. Though his practice is in Brazil, he is known to perform surgeries in San Diego.
- Christopher Dare, Hampshire, England - While there have been only two of his patients on this site (both would go to him again), he was the understudy of the late Nick Boeree. We know not a lot about Mr Dare, but as the understudy of the most highly spoken of spine surgeon to which I've had any exposure, Mr Dare warrants consideration.
- Jack Zigler, Plano, TX - A world renowned and extensively published spine researcher that is profusely cited by his peers. He is the only ProDisc surgeon of which I've not read of producing a bad surgical outcome. Because of his experience in the ProDisc FDA IDE trials and his former investment dealings with Synthes, he's possibly the most capable ProDisc surgeon in the New World, if not the entire planet.
- Willem Zeegers, Bonn, Germany - A world renowned spine surgeon with about 25 years of experience in ADR. His patients love him and it is very unusual to find a bad surgical outcome at his hands. On the down side ... he is a paid representative of LDR, so you're only going to get one of their products.

I don't doubt there are a great many ADR surgeons as good as these gentlemen, but these are the ones that I've observed that seem to reliably and routinely turn out a steady stream of excellent outcomes.

Good luck, Jeff

I am also researching doctors so this thread is very helpful. Seems like M6 is the way to go for ADRs and Clavel is the best choice. That said, does anyone know who Ritter-Lang is? Is he a good option?

Hey Mike - I used to live in spring Texas- loved that rodeo bar you've got in the mall there in Katy. :)

Anyways I would say ritter-lang is well known in this board and I would say he is more notorious than well regarded. If I had the choice between him and clavel (and I did :P) I would go with clavel. Again search the forums for info on sternum and ritter-lang to get more info.

Jeff

I spoke to an associate with Ritter Lang last night. I got a number from betterdiscreplacement.com and spoke with a very nice gentle man. He was very informative but as the website said I could choose Clavel or Ritter Lang. When I spoke of Clavel he kept redirecting the conversation to Ritter Lang and was told Clavel was more of a cervical doctor because he was a neurologist and not orthopedic. Again the man I spoke to was wonderful but I felt he was defiantly biased. That said I haven't spoken to anyone overseas but based on what I read Pablo Clavel is the direction I am leaning. I have watched several YouTube videos of him and read a ton of reviews and I have yet to find a unsatisfied customer. I look forward to hearing more about your doctors and experiences. Thanks and may you day be pain free. GOD BLESS!!

I think Clavel is slowly going his own way away from Enande (the people who run betterdiscreplacement.com) and is getting a lot of referrals directly to his own site which can be found here: Medical tourism in Spain and spine surgery - Barcelona Spine Center and this is probably why they push Ritter-Lang - they even 'accidentally' had RL review my MRIs rather than Clavel at first. My very strong opinion is DO NOT go through Enande - their people are terrible - talk directly with Clavel's staff through his website. His assistant Yolanda is great, the contact info goes right to her it can be found here: Contact & Arrangement Process | Bcn Spine Center

Good Luck,

-Jeff

Also if you DON'T go through Enande you are able to potentially negotiate your price with Clavel, with Enande you are stuck, FYI.

I really feel for you with regard to finding a surgeon. All of us who have had successful out comes will have nothing but pure gratitude for our surgeon. I'm sure the particular replacement disc will contribute hugely to the successful out come of the operation. Having said that without the skill of the surgeon whatever the disc there could be problems. I guess I'm saying right disc right surgeon.

I was offered the M6L disc replacement for L5S1 and it took me a little over a year to finally come to the decision to have the operation purely because I was in so much pain the thought of having the operation and it not be a success was almost a risk I didn't want to take (its hard to explain!!) I did do a fair bit of research on the M6 and I quickly came to the decision that it was the best disc on offer and also there was nothing likely to supersede it in the near future, as for the surgeon it honestly never occurred to me to look into others, to me he was so approachable and down to earth it really was instant trust, I had two spinal epidurals with him before I made the decision to have the op which only confirmed my trust in him. He had the ability to make me laugh when I felt like crying. He showed genuine compassion and passion from the start. He's simply a genuinely down to earth guy.

I do hope I haven't woffeled on to much!! But I really think if you can personally speak to the surgeons you will know right away which one is right for you.

Oh and my surgeon was Mr Chris Dare ( known as Lord Dare in my house) working in Southampton UK
Please do let me know if I can be of any more help
Mia

Thanks so much for all of your input. I will definitely consider Dr.dare as well. Iam hoping to find the best surgeon soon. All of the pain, stress, and concern for failure is really starting to take a toll on me. I know what you are saying when you weren't sure if you wanted the surgery when thinking it could be worse afterwards.
It is so baffling the wide array of different opinions doctors have. I went to see Dr. Musante today and he told me that he has done well over two hundred ADRs and spoke of all of the disc manufacturers and was even involved in some early m6 trials a few years ago. He said that he thought that with what was on the market in the states I should have a fusion at L5S1 and if there were any problems with adjacent discs he could then replace it with a more advanced disc if one was available. I asked him what he thought of the m6 and he said he loved it. Then proceeded to tell me it was still new and he would still do the anterior approach fusion. He also said that the new ALIF was much more advanced and that adjacent disc degeneration was a theory. Everything he said made great sense and he was actually very knowledgable. I just don't think I am prepared to basically write in my next surgery when the adjacent disc fails. Oh plus as he stood up he said that he had spent a lot of time with us and he had to run. Oh and I scheduled two time slots as to not effect others appointments and he was an hour late seeing us. I really hope the end of all of this crazy BS is almost over. My family and business is beginning to show signs of wear:-(.

I hope the pain subsides for everyone soon and may God Bless you all.