LOOKING FOR NEUROSEURGON ADVICE..ANYONE?

Wow Dave, Im so sorry to hear this. I dont know any Neurosurgeons but im sending positive thoughts your way.
Jon in Delaware

 

So sorry to hear about this.

I don't know anything about Neurosurgery, but my first thought was to contact Johns Hopkins in Northern Baltimore.

Comprehensive Brain Tumor Center at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, MD

.

 

It's unfortunate that Dr. Simeone has retired, but I would suggest the folks in his practice at Penn Medicine would be a good place to start. Dr. Simeone fixed a couple of my friends that no one else would touch, and I mean really FIXED them, and they had scary spinal issues.

I have a fleeting memory of Dr. Bill Welch there, and he seems well respected. I think, but am not 100% sure, that my wife went to see him for an issue she was having some years ago and we resolved it without surgery, but it was not a spinal issue.

https://www.pennmedicine.org/providers/profile/william-welch?fadf=pennmedicine

William C. Welch, MD, FACS, FICS Surgeon
Chair, Department of Neurosurgery at Pennsylvania Hospital
Vice Chair, Department of Neurosurgery
Professor of Neurosurgery
Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery

Named to the 2013 Philadelphia Super Doctors list
Recognized annually in Philadelphia Magazine's Top Docs issue, 2010-2013, and 2015-2016
Recognized by America's Top Doctors 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012-14
Recognized by Best Doctors in America 2007-2008, 2009-2010, 2011-2012

800-789-7366

I do know Penn does a great job with this stuff. Best of luck.

Dave M

 

Sorry to hear about your wife's spinal problems. My wife went thru the same thing a couple of years ago and did a lot of research into surgeons providing treatment. Not knowing your wife's exact condition and how far you are willing to travel for opinion/treatment, here are 4 thoughts:

(1) From personal experience with other specialities, Johns Hopkins is known for excellent surgeons and is probably within reasonable proximity to you outside PA. You may want to research them. They also have a private facility within the complex in Baltimore known as the Marburg Center where VIPs from all over the world come for medical treatment and is like a luxury hotel if you want to pamper your wife some. It's extra cost and many of the patients have body guards stationed outside their rooms. It is a once in a lifetime experience.

(2) In Northern Virginia (Fairfax), my wife got a second opinion from Dr. Christopher P. Silveri. In our case, he didn't feel that surgery would be beneficial. He can be a bit abrupt but is considered a hot-shot surgeon; his partner excels in the bedside manner.

(3) The University of Virginia in Charlottsville has a renounced Spine Center but the Doctor we saw is no longer there. This was for a 3rd opinion which also recommended against surgery at the time.

(4) The problem with spine surgery is that there is no guarantee. Some persons experience later problems as loads are shifted to other areas of the spine. Most surgeons work on a 4-6 week booking lead time, so mid-January is probably the earliest surgery could be scheduled, although you might get lucky and get an office visit appointment during the holidays.

Hope this helps. Good luck with your quest.

 

PM me. I'm a neurosurgeon in So Cal. Happy to render an opinion or simply advise. Either way, sorry to hear and best of luck to her.

 

Dave, sorry to hear this. Hoping your wife regains her health and strength in the coming year.

 

PM sent

 

My former Significant Other had $140K surgery for scoliosis at Johns Hopkins in 1999. This involved large incisions down the spine and across the pelvis, fusing discs, and inserting steel rods to correct a curvature of the spine. This was a MAJOR procedure, something like 12 hours in the OR. The surgeon that did the work is retired, but I was very impressed with everyone I met and spoke with at Hopkins Neurosurgery, and the procedure was totally successful.

We did have initial problems with the quality of care after surgery when my SO was in a standard private room. I found this very surprising, as my SO had a pretty high level position in nursing administration at Hopkins at the time. I was thinking that, if this was happening to someone on staff, how the heck would some ordinary moax make out?

The solution was the Marburg Pavilion, as poster energy88 has already suggested. Absolutely give Marburg serious consideration if you do go with Hopkins. Care was first rate and immediately attentive to every issue. The food was so good, I used to adjust my visiting times so I could have dinner there. My SO's health insurance picked up the cost of a standard private room, so we were on the hook for the difference between that and a room at Marburg. That turned out to be surprisingly reasonable, at least in 1999.

Best of luck!

 

David,
Sorry to hear of your wife's cervical spine issues. Unfortunately,
I personally went through a similar ordeal a few years back. You are not that far from NY where the Hospital For Special Surgery is located. It is the number 1 ranked hospital in the country for orthopedic surgery. I had my multilevel cervical spine surgery done there and if your plans fall through I would highly recommend that you look into getting an opinion there. Best of luck to you and your wife.

 

I used Dr. Bitan at Lenox Hill in NYC. He's the head of spinal surgery at that hospital. My surgery was in 2005 and I still play baseball and golf at the age of 57. I've sent many friends to him through the years and they were all thrilled. Best of luck.

 

David,

Sorry to hear about your wife's health issues. Although I don't have any specific doctor recommendations, I was recently introduced to a company (Grand Rounds - Improving Healthcare and Outcome for Patients | Grand Rounds) that focuses on getting patients in touch with highly acclaimed doctors for second opinions as well as diagnostic confirmation.

In full disclosure: I have no experience or direct relationship with this company, other than having had an intro to the team as part of the business development for my business (I own a data science consulting business). I was, however, impressed by their team and their mission.

Hopefully this can be of some help! Best of luck!

Ruben

 

Clifford Solomon would be my choice. Skilled empathetic surgeon . Hopkins trained. Know him personally:
Clifford T. Solomon, M.D. - Baltimore Washington Medical Center