Page 3 » Donald Corenman MD DC | Spine Surgeon Colorado

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sperryguy
Participant

April 5, 2017 at 10:35 am

Post count: 68

in reply to: Incomplete Spinal Fusion #24636

Hi Dr. Corenman

Would any of my prior imaging show if the cage is extruding into the nerve canal? My imaging included a CT Mylegram, CAT with contrast, MRI’s, SPECT. Would that protrusion contribute to my symptoms? The surgeon indicated that these type of cages are typically used in MI TLIF.

Thanks Again for all your patience.

Steve

sperryguy
Participant

April 4, 2017 at 9:43 am

Post count: 68

in reply to: Incomplete Spinal Fusion #24631

Hi Dr. Corenman

So sorry with all the questions. One concern regarding the upcoming surgery. The surgeon indicated he will be redoing the L4/5 failed site. He mentioned he wouldn’t attempt to remove the Globus Expandable cage? He said its to dangerous and would work around the cage. Any suggestions? I would love to have all the questionable hardware removed.

Thank you again for all your patience.

Steve

sperryguy
Participant

March 27, 2017 at 12:59 pm

Post count: 68

in reply to: Incomplete Spinal Fusion #24597

Hi Dr. Corenman

I am relieved as well. Though, still concerned about the groin pain. It has relented somewhat since the injections. The surgeon said we can discuss my options on the day of surgery if L3/L4 should be decompressed. He did point out that the additional decompression would add to the case (maybe 30 minutes), and add to my recovery time. We discussed nausea, how to address the pain, time in the hospital, and at home recovery. He pointed out that if needed, I could be placed in the “SICU” for 24 hours? Is that needed? Is the quality of care superior? My previous surgery, the nausea on the day of release hit me very hard. He said he would discuss with the pain management team and his anesthesiologist on the case. It is hard enough dealing with all the pain, becoming so nauseous is the cherry on the cake. Have you ever used a spinal block and sedation for such a surgery?

Thank you again..Steve

sperryguy
Participant

March 24, 2017 at 1:51 pm

Post count: 68

in reply to: Incomplete Spinal Fusion #24583

Hi Dr Corenman

I just returned from my surgeon consult. His clinical diagnosis along with the latest Mri, he concluded that the groin issues vs the l3 level impingement shouldn’t cause so much pain. There is only a slight possibility that it is the cause of the pain. Still, he said he would consider looking at the level during surgery and look for impingement or other issues. If warranted, he would decompress. He will perform what he called an “open tlif”. His feeling was he needs to get a clear field of the issues. The l5 as per the dr, is severely degenerated with nerve compression. So, as of this posting, he felt fusing the l3 is not recommended. He also pointed out that the latest pain block epidural was not conclusive.
My surgery is scheduled for May 18th at st francis hospital in long island. He would like me in the Sicu?
Said to keep better watch on me. Thank you again for your kindness

sperryguy
Participant

March 23, 2017 at 8:55 am

Post count: 68

in reply to: Incomplete Spinal Fusion #24573

Hi Dr Corenman

Yet another update. As of 3/22/17 @ 10:00PM EST, and at 3/23/17 @ 1AM, the groin pain returned (7 pain level). The back and leg pain preceded the pain, 3/22/17 @ 9PM EST. My surgical/planning appointment is tomorrow at 10:30AM. I’m hoping to include my PT, who is a PHD specializing in spines.

Thank You Again!

Steve

sperryguy
Participant

March 21, 2017 at 10:23 am

Post count: 68

in reply to: Incomplete Spinal Fusion #24571

the time period was 8:30AM for the injection, and the one incident was at 8:30PM.
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Viewing 6 posts - 13 through 18 (of 65 total)

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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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sperryguy

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