Page 4 » Donald Corenman MD DC | Spine Surgeon Colorado

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carolns
Participant

February 26, 2016 at 8:27 am

Post count: 88

in reply to: lumbar spine #21430

yes I read both of the info. I do have advanced facets for years and spinal stenosis for years. I moved last May and I over did it ( I’m a doer) and now I am paying for it.
Had my third epidural needle and very stiff getting out of bed and back of thighs. I am doing my exercises 3 times a day.
I do understand what is going on now after reading your info. Think I can pull this off without a operation (read it), got to get walking.
Thank you so much.carolns

carolns
Participant

October 28, 2014 at 1:43 am

Post count: 88

in reply to: c2 and c3 please #11612

Just came back from Halifax for my 9 mts checkup. Had xrays and flex/ext
test. Both were great. Was told bone takes 2 years to heal( not sure the word he used) and I am 90% there. I go back in 2 years.
Driving my car and got my life back. Can’t find words to thank you Dr Coreman. See you in 2 years Carolns

5

carolns
Participant

July 2, 2014 at 5:06 am

Post count: 88

in reply to: c2 and c3 please #11140

Dr. Corenman,
With all of your help I will be 5 months post surgery ( July 7) of posterior cervical decompression fusion of c2c3c4 and I am doing so well. My range of motion is returning and I have NO PAIN at all. Wow life is so different and wonderful. Go to see my surgeon in October.
The hardest part was having patience. Knowing you were here to answer ALL of my many questions got me through each stage of my healing.
I am doing my exercises. You taught me so much about my neck. Thank you so much. Carolns

carolns
Participant

May 29, 2014 at 1:01 am

Post count: 88

in reply to: pain off and on #10903

You are so right Dr Coreman…..no pain for last 10 days….doing great thanks to you…..if not for you I would not be where I am today….NS said in report that I got today from family doctor that x-rays (had 7)
from April 28th, demonstrate preserved alignment with no evidence of hardware failure or malfunction. Her incision is well healed.
Thank you for all the help you gave me. Thank you for who you are and for what you do. Carolns
ps Was concerned as I never wore a collar, just maybe 3 o4 times when I went outside.

carolns
Participant

April 29, 2014 at 6:14 am

Post count: 88

in reply to: c2 and c3 please #10839

Just found this …..Pain Medications • Do not take NSAID medications (Ibuprofen, Naprosyn, etc.) or Cox-2 inhibitors (Celebrex, etc.) for 3-6 months following surgery.

This made me feel better. Dr Corenman you have helped me so much and I don’t know how to thank you. You are sooooo caring. Carolns (((((hugs))))

carolns
Participant

April 29, 2014 at 4:02 am

Post count: 88

in reply to: c2 and c3 please #10837

Back from Halifax and I am so tired. My NS said everything looks good. He showed me where the c2-c4 was pushing way over where it wasn’t suppose to be before surgery. Then he showed me the x-ray where it is all lined up in a straight line. There were 3 titanium rods and screws
Doesn’t want me to go back on celebrex for 2 more mts. I wonder why? My brain went blank but he said it takes a long time to heal.
I still have some pain when I tense up and I think I might see the family doc about this.
Going to do light therapy. I go to my regular doc May6 and will print what he says. thanks so very much Carolns
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Donald Corenman, MD, DC

Average rating:

81 reviews

Eric S

Sep 26, 2021

by Eric S on Donald Corenman, MD, DC

Successful pars repair at 46 years old

Back in November of 2018 (at 46 years old) I came from Vancouver BC to have a pars repair done with Dr. Donald Corenman at the Steadman Clinic in Vail Colorado. I'm finally posting this review nearly three years later in late 2021. The reason I waited so long was I wanted to know the final result before I posted my review. Unfortunately in that time Dr. Corenman has retired. Nevertheless, I want to post this review of Dr. Corenman and his staff at the Steadman Clinic in their excellent treatment of my L5 pars interarticularis.

I fractured my pars at age 42 back in 2014 when rolling on the gym floor, and was denied treatment by the Canadian healthcare system, probably due to my age. First my GP told me there was no surgical option for a pars defect, which was quite incorrect! I tried to live with it, but the symptoms worsened (periodic random spine slippage and weeks of resultant pain after just bending over to tie my shoe, so I eventually learned to mostly squat and hardly bend). When I finally consulted with Canadian spine surgeons, I was told they believed my pars defect had been congenital (since birth). This was absurd, considering I had done extreme martial arts (including jiu jitsu) for years prior, as well as 5 years of reinforcing steel full time in my 20s, probably the hardest job on the back you can find. No pars defect like mine would possibly have allowed this--ergo it was impossible that I had had the defect since birth. I did however have an asymptomatic congenital spina bifida occulta that made me more susceptible to a pars fracture. In 2014 in one instant, I went from having the strongest back people I knew said they'd ever seen, to being unable to safely bend over and tie my shoe without a non-negligible risk of my spine slipping randomly (which would lead to weeks of pain after each occurrence). This was due to the unilateral L5 pars defect, otherwise known as spondylolysis. It was when lying in pain on the floor 4 years later after maybe the 6th spine slippage event post injury, that I had had enough, and resolved to have surgery. If Canada's "universal health care" said no, I would make lemonade from lemons, and find the very best surgeon in the world at pars repairs. That was Dr. Donald Corenman. Dr. Corenman back in 2018 ran a website https://neckandback.com/ that dedicated many pages to the science of every aspect of pars repairs, from eligibility (good discs on MRI), to best surgical techniques (minimal open compared to minimally invasive), best imaging to use (i.e., O-Arm with Stealth imaging vs. older fluoroscopy), the ideal amount of BMP to use and why not use too much or too little, and much more, all to do with pars repairs, pages upon pages of his site just on the pars, with scientific references and his own extensive expert opinion. As a health research statistician, I was very impressed with this. It was in stark contrast to the websites of other spine surgeons which barely gave the pars a word or two, focusing almost exclusively on fusions. I had found the best surgeon in the world for pars repairs, and so after Dr. Corenman personally screened my MRI to ensure my discs were healthy, I booked the surgery.

Being 46 years old at the time of surgery in 2018, with a 4-year-old pars fracture from 2014 combined with a congenital SBO meant my pars fragment was somewhat atrophied, but it was "very solid", said Dr. Corenman in the operative report. Nevertheless, it was challenging with two things to fix, the pars and SBO, and OR time was around 4 hours. Recovery over the following months was guided by a very clear "Spine binder" from the Steadman Clinic with strict rules of "no BLT" (no bending, lifting or twisting), and illustrated physiotherapy guidelines. They even warned patients to avoid fish oil supplements, which could excessively dampen inflammation and hence slow bone healing. They answered many questions I had during months of recovery, with responses coming from the very supportive Lori Fugate (then director of Dr. Corenman's practice), and Ehrich Bean (then physician's assistant at the practice), as well as a couple calls with Dr. Corenman himself after two of the CT scans. Ehrich Bean offered great advice for taking the spine binder conservatively due to the nature of pars repairs vs. fusions. The final post-op CT scan I had was a couple weeks ago at 34 months post-op, and Dr. Corenman had retired, but I got a very positive and informative call from Eric Strauch (current PA at the Steadman Clinic under Dr. Corenman's replacement there, and who had also worked with Dr. Corenman previously). The staff at the Steadman Clinic were extremely supportive all the way through the process. I should mention, the local Canadian spine surgeon did offer me very good post-operative support including antibiotics as needed to deal with a mild surface incision-site infection early on, booking numerous x-rays when I felt something was amiss, as well as booking all four of my post-op CT scans. I am very grateful for that support also.

My final result shows plenty of solid bone across the pars and a healed SBO, with my vertebral body now a solid bone ring instead of being broken at two places as it was pre-op. Does my spine hold up in the real world? You bet! I have recently dug and moved several yards of dirt and sand and gravel by myself (shovel and wheelbarrow!) to fix our water main, pulled roots from the yard, moved several "portable" (these are HUGE) air conditioners up several flights of stairs my myself, and lifted weights. I now run 2 miles (3.2 KM) several times weekly with a hard 100 meter dash in the middle. I bend deeply before each run I go on, with no spine slippage. My spine feels amazing. I can bend over to do exercise, or real word tasks, with no risk of spine slippage.

My sincere thanks to God, Dr. Donald Corenman, Lori Fugate, Ehrich Bean, Eric Strauch, and the Steadman Clinic, as well as the Canadian spine surgeon who offered me excellent post-operative care back in Canada. You have all given me a new lease on life.

Sincerely,
Eric S

Robert S

May 11, 2021

by Robert S on Donald Corenman, MD, DC

Back Fusion Surgery

I had my entire lumbar spine fused in November of 2018. I had scoliosis , with pinched nerves that were so painful I could hardly walk - and standing for more than a few minutes was impossible. Even sitting was painful.
The fusion surgery produced immediate relief! And the recovery was much easier than I expected.
To this day I can do all the activities I love from hiking, to standing in a stream fly fishing to riding my bike long distances - or just walking down the street with my wife.
Kudos to Dr. Corenman and his staff, (including the two Erics) for taking such good care of me!

Leslie R

Jul 9, 2020

by Leslie R on Donald Corenman, MD, DC

TLIF

I had my TLIF surgery on 6/24/2020 by Dr. Corenman, I can not say enough good things about the Dr or his staff. I was always treated with respect and explained everything throughly, that made it easy for everyone to understand. I highly recommend Dr. Corenman and the Steadman Clinic.

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carolns

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