New to ADR - considering surgery in April - Page 7

Lillyth · #61 03-10-2013, 11:32 PM

If I had one level and were not allergic to nickel (the ProDosc has nickel), Dr. Zeegers at TBI would be my first choice. I wouldn't hesitate, and would hop on a plane before even speaking to him with no hesitation.

Of course, you should always do a consult just to make sure you "click" with the doc, but I would have no fear getting my surgery with him.

simeoni · #62 03-11-2013, 06:32 AM

Do you mean Dr. Zigler? I have not heard that Dr. Zeegers would operate in the US or TBI (?)

Lillyth · #63 03-11-2013, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by simeoni

Do you mean Dr. Zigler? I have not heard that Dr. Zeegers would operate in the US or TBI (?)

Shoot. Yeah. Typo. Frigging carpel tunnel.

afhstock · #64 03-13-2013, 06:40 PM

Hello everyone,
I have been quietly scouring this site for about a year but only wanted to post when I was about to proceed with surgery. I am planning an L5-S1 M6-L ADR with Mr. David Harrison (spine surgeon) in the UK at BMI-Princess Margaret Hospital. He's hardly mentioned here but he's had decades of experience with the older type discs and has done approx 70+ M6's both cervical and lumbar. He has also performed an M6-L on Retief Goosen (I'll provide a link later) who's a pro golfer at the L3-4 level. He returned to pro golf tours at 5 months amazingly. Of course that level is not as stressed as the lowers.
I was also considering Dr. Clavel or Mr. Dare who are also fine surgeons. After doing research, I personally can't see why you would choose outside of those docs if planning on going overseas. Cost is about the same, slightly higher in the U.K.

Praying for a pain-free life for everyone.

I'm a 35 y/o male and planning for surgery on April 16 2013. He's busy but not so busy as to feel overlooked. Of course only post-op will I give you a real outlook but his PA is also wonderful

NJ Gene · #65 03-27-2013, 08:59 AM

Hi All,

I wanted to let you know that I had my Foraminotomy at C6/C7 yesterday in NYC. All symptoms giving rise to my surgery are gone. I do have a lot of post-surgical pain though. That is to be expected and I was warned of it in advance. I have lots of good pain meds. Normally I don't like taking them, but now they are helpful. Hopefully in about 48 hours I can scale back a little bit.

I'm glad I chose what I did. Given that I am only working part-time, spending money to go to Europe would have been difficult. The biggest downside of the foraminotomy is that I need to wait approx 12 weeks before I can go back to exercising and other activities at pre-surgical levels without taking a chance and compromising my surgery. In about 2 weeks I should be able to drive and do normal everyday things as long as I don't put added stress on my neck.

There is always a chance that I may need surgery in the future as I have a 2 levels of fusion from C3/C5. However, the most likely spot of future surgery would probably be C5/C6, where there is an existing bulge and adjacent to the fusion. My hope is that if that becomes worse and needs treatment, it will be at a point in time when insurance allows ADR directly below a fusion. In my case, I'm glad I did it here in the U.S. I know many of you had no choice. It was either a matter of living your life as a cripple here or getting your life back by getting ADR in Europe now.

I need to mention a couple things I've learned about this process. It seems pretty clear who the good surgeons in Europe are. One of them is Dr. Biersted. However, I do not like his American team leaders, especially, Kelli. She tried to scare me off of a foraminotomy by sending me a link to one in the lumber region (mine was cervical) and telling me that it might de-stabilize my spine. She told me this on the premise that she cared for me and my well-being. Little did she know that I am in a family of physicians and I do have a good relationship with my surgeons who have done non-ADR surgery in the past. I learned that she and her other American counterparts get a commission on patients they send over to Dr. Bierstedt. I find it interesting that she had her surgery by Dr. Ritter-Lang and is doing well, yet now works on Dr. Bierstedt's team. I also find it interesting that she is going to chiropractic school while being a team leader for Dr. Bierstedt. I have nothing against chiropractors, but they are trained in manipulation and one of their big selling points is to prevent surgery. I believe that Kelli is using Dr. Bierstedt to finance her training, but once she becomes certified she will discourage the very surgery that she received and is now pushing.

Gene

newleaseonlife · #66 03-30-2013, 12:12 AM

Gene, I am so glad that you were able to get this procedure done. It sounds as if this was the correct surgical option for you. Best wishes for your continued healing!

Boxer78 · #67 03-30-2013, 12:23 AM

Interesting point on bierstedts team members. I have spoken to Bierstedt and liked him very much but dealing w his team is another story. The malte situation makes me nervous from the stenum stories. However Bierstedt patients seem to do very well

kimmers · #68 03-30-2013, 10:34 AM

Gene,

Foraminotomies, can destabilize the lumbar spine. However, according to my new "toy", The Handbook of Spine Surgery, by Baaj, Mummaneni, Uribe, Vaccaro and Greenberg, MDs, it says: "In contrast to the anterior discectomy approach, posterior cervical foraminotomy is not destabilizing; therefore, there is no need for fusion/implants or harvesting autograft."
Since the foraminotomy has taken care of your spine pain, then that was the right avenue for you to go down.
IMHO, the less invasive a surgery, the better.
ADR and fusion are major surgeries and they shouldn't be undertaken if something less invasive can work.
I think it is great you did your homework and chose wisely when it came to surgery.

In my case, I did not have the option of a less-invasive surgery. Since the pain was coming from the disc itself, nothing short of a fusion or ADR was going to help. I had annular tears and my intervertebral discs needed to come out.

Take it easy for those first twelve weeks and feel better,

Kimmers

NJ Gene · #69 03-30-2013, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boxer78

Interesting point on bierstedts team members. I have spoken to Bierstedt and liked him very much but dealing w his team is another story. The malte situation makes me nervous from the stenum stories. However Bierstedt patients seem to do very well

Boxer,

Everything I've heard about Dr. Bierstedt as a surgeon seems positive. I was ready to use him until my surgeon at home convinced me to do a less invasive procedure instead. Once that happened, I started getting negative comments from Kelli, Ken, and Malte. I have learned that they get paid on a commission basis, so I'm not surprised with some of the things that they've said, trying to scare me but using the premise that they care about me. What a load of B.S.

Gene

newleaseonlife · #70 03-30-2013, 12:44 PM

Surgical decisions are difficult enough without surgical staff pressuring you and making you second guess your decisions. I am not familiar with Dr. Bierstedt or his staff, but could the negative comments be chalked up to poor English translation skills?

I try very hard to only think the best of people. I'm not naive, but I like to operate under the premise that all people are good. I believe in following the "golden rule", and I would hope that others, especially those who are in the position of helping others, would do likewise.