Donald Corenman MD DC | Spine Surgeon Colorado

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August 19, 2011 at 9:30 pm

Post count: 5

in reply to: pain after spinal stenosis op. #4790

Hello again.
6 weeks ago I was at my neurosurgeon. I had had no relief in the L5 pain on the right side after injection with cortisone. I had S1 pain on the left side from the regenerated cyst.
It was decided that I should do foraminal decompression on the right L5 by removing a minor part of the facet joint. On the left side where the cyst was regenerated and irritated the S1 root it was planned to obliterate the facet joint.
Before operation a CT myelografi was performed. The myelografi showed no filling of the L5 root sheet on the right side and no filling of the L5 root sheet on the left side. On the left side the L5 root was dislocated.
Operation was planned on the 15. of august. The last week before operation I had some relief of my pain. I was able to walk 30 min. with little pain.
On the 15. of august the operation was cancelled because I was better in my pain.
My neurosurgeon would only operate if the pain is intolerable or in case of paresis.
My situation is now somewhat frustrating. I have numbness from L5 both sides and some from S1 left side. If I stand more than 5-10 min or walk I expire reduced strength in the right quadriceps.
I was very disappointed when the operation was cancelled because I had hoped to bee”cured” for my symptoms.
Would your advise concerning operation bee the same as my neurosurgeon?

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June 24, 2011 at 11:44 pm

Post count: 5

in reply to: pain after spinal stenosis op. #4664

Thank you very much for your answer. From your answer and your website it is obvious that you are a highly trustworthy and professional specialist.
I live in Norway and therefore it is difficult to consult you live but if I lived in US i would surely consult you.
Your advise has been very helpful to me in my decision for further operation. I will let you know the outcome.

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June 24, 2011 at 4:47 pm

Post count: 5

in reply to: pain after spinal stenosis op. #4662

Hello again
New x rays of the 5 lumbar vertebra did not show any sign of instability or -listesis.
My neurosurgeon has recommended microsurgical decompression in the foramen of the right L5 root to relieve the L5 symptoms. He will wait and see how the regenerated cyst affecting S1 develops.
I have had consultation with an ortopaedic surgeon, who has long experience with spine surgery, to get a second opinion. He recommend an laminectomy of the 5. vertebra. He recommend this because of better possibility for decompression and at the same time decompressing the S1 root from the cyst.
My neurosurgeon finds laminectomy “old fashioned” and with too much risk for “failed back surgery syndrome”.
So now I have to decide which operation I want.
Do you find laminectomy too risky?

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June 14, 2011 at 5:23 pm

Post count: 5

in reply to: pain after spinal stenosis op. #4630

Hello again.
Thank you for your helpful answer to my previous question. I am now 6 weeks after surgery. I have more pain in my right leg than before operation.
I had at new MRI with contrast 3 days ago. My neurosurgeon has decompressed L5 in the recess 6 weeks ago but on the new MRI it seems as if I have a foraminal stenosis as well as I had a recess stenosis.
The cyst on the left side compressing S1 was removed but it has unfortunately been regenereted in only these 6 weeks. But the pain form the cyst is not as bad as before operation.
I had a cortison injecion on the right side aimed at L5 3 days ago and if this injection does not help the doctor will do a new microsurgical op. to decompress L5 in the foramen.
I know it is difficult for you to say much without you having the MRI pictures but would you recommend a new operation on the right side?
To me it seems a the first operation on the right side has increased the pressure on the L5 root in the foramen. Does that make sense?
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Viewing 4 posts - 1 through 4 (of 4 total)

Donald Corenman, MD, DC

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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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