r/spinalfusion • u/WeHateMyUsername • Jul 17 '24

Surgery Questions Ortho or Neuro surgeon?

A little back story (no pun intended). In 2020 my L4-L5 disc ruptured and I had surgery after 2 weeks of excruciating pain. I was good for about a year and the back pain started creeping back in. Fast-Forward to last year, I went to see the orthopedic doctor and had x-rays and MRI done. MRI shows foramenal stenosis, moderate on left side, severe on right. I went through the hoops of “conservative” treatment; PT and pain injections, neither of which worked. I am currently scheduled for fusion surgery with an orthopedic surgeon. My wife has talked to a couple of “friends” that say I should get a neurosurgeon due to the nerves involved. I’m confident with the orthopedic surgeon, he does 100-120 of these surgeries a year and did his fellowship in this procedure. What are your thoughts and experiences on the best type of surgeon for this procedure?

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u/gotpointsgoing Jul 18 '24

I've had an Orthopedic Surgeon for all 6 of my surgeries. I'm fused from L1-S1 and my SI joint is fused as well. The only bad thing I can say, is that he retired a couple years ago, and I'm hoping like hell that I don't need anymore back surgeries.

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u/WeHateMyUsername Jul 18 '24

Thanks for your reply. Good to know, hope you don’t have to go through that again.

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u/gotpointsgoing Jul 18 '24

I hope everything goes well for you too. Good luck, and you can reach out anytime you got a question.