OT - Anybody know a fantastic back surgeon??

OK, I'm at my wit's end. I know this is absolutely Off Topic, but I really don't know where to turn and I'm hoping that maybe someone here can point me in a sane direction.

My husband is experiencing severe pain. It's been going on for years, and getting progressively worse. He's already had one back surgery and several steroid injections to the spine. He has always been a very active individual, but now he is in too much pain to do anything but barely make it to and from work, only through the good graces of way too many pain meds.

So obviously, we have to do something, now. We are willing to travel for the best possible medical treatment available. I don't know if that means the best spinal surgeon, the best physical therapist, or what. I do know that the doctors he has been seeing are getting nowhere. But I have no idea how to find the right doctor. How do you go about learning who the best back doctors in the country are? Google "top spine surgeons" and the results are a list of ads from the doctors themselves. 

I know that somewhere on the net, there must be a forum, like this one, dedicated to back pain. The only ones I've found are very small, and consist mainly of people posting about their pain without receiving any responses.

I guess I'm just hoping that one of you might have heard tales of a miraculous back doctor  somewhere, or have some idea how I would go about finding the very best. Any ideas?

HI Anna,

Try this link.

http://www.healthgrades.com/

Are you not in northern Alabama ? Have you tried docs iin Birmingham. Being I live in the very  southern part of Alabama, when people have real big health problems that is where they head to for care. Most local docs refer that far as well, even though Montgomery is much closer.


Also at this link... is a really cool 3D spine simulator... go play with it.. It gives you an idea of where the pain is originating from when y ou click on where you hurt...
http://www.richterfamilychiro.com/

If I think of anywhere else I will come back and post more.

Will pray you fnd some relief for him soon ! That type of pain sucks.

Thanks, Ginger! I was poking around healthgrades.com last weekend but it didn't seem possible to see information about surgeons without choosing one and paying for the info. That didn't seem too helpful, because I needed the info before choosing the surgeon. LOL I'll check it out again though. Maybe I just wasn't on the right part of the site.

Yes, I'm sure we'll end up in B-ham. There are just so many docs there, and I know there are a few that have had some nightmarish results. I'm trying to separate the wheat from the chaff, and that's really hard to do.

The pain he's having is very specific, and from what I have been able to research, it seems that surgery rarely helps. So I guess I'm looking for someone who can see the whole picture and who isn't just a cutter.

Oh, Anna! I am sooo sorry for his pain and your shared frustration. I will ask around in Chicago and see what I find.

And don't worry, his nads are safe with us!

Nicolle

Thanks, Nicolle! 

Anna,
I'm very sorry to hear of your husband's (and yours as well) suffering. My brother has very similar back problems. It sounds like a pinched sciatic nerve. I know it radiates down his leg, and will pretty much cripple him from time to time. He too has already had one back surgery only to have the pain return again. The only real relief he seems to find is with continuing visits to a chiropractor. I did not see in your post you mentioning one so I thought I might deliver my two cents. The surgeons are wanting to operate again, but he says he won't do it as long a sthe chiropractor visits are working. I think the visits are coverd by insurance too! Just a thought for you. I hope you two get some relief quickly.

William

William, I know you're right. I think regular chiro visits would do him a world of good. He is extremely resistant to chiropracty though. I begged, and begged, and he finally consented to see one a few years ago, and had a very bad experience. Now, he won't even talk about it.

It seems that some people have had good results with this sort of pain, using stretching exercises and strengthening the core. So now I'm trying to talk him into pilates and yoga, with just about as much success. :::sigh::  I have a feeling that he's just about to the point where he may be willing to entertain all possibilities though.

I wish I knew of someone. If by chance you find a doctor within a 200 mile radius of Amarillo, you can stay with me while your husband get checked out. I'll check with my daughter in Lubbock and ask her to do some research, too.

Hugs to you and hubbie.

Hugs back atcha Christine! You are just the sweetest thing walking. But don't worry, I won't tell anyone.