Summary
A patient from Michigan had been battling chronic lower back pain for over 10 years, relying on spinal injections that eventually stopped providing relief, and facing a recommendation for spinal fusion from his local physicians. Encouraged by his two nurse daughters to find an alternative, he discovered Deuk Spine Institute through a neighbor’s recommendation, consulted with Dr. Deukmedjian remotely via MRI review, and traveled to Florida for the Deuk Laser Disc Repair® to treat his discogenic back pain. A month later, he developed buttock pain that was diagnosed as piriformis syndrome, and he returned to Deuk Spine Institute for a minimally invasive piriformis release. Following both procedures he was completely pain-free in his back and buttock without needing pain medication, and was eagerly planning his return to golf, the gym, and outdoor activities.
Transcript
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Good morning. I’m Dr. Deukmedjian. I’m here with a patient who came to us with chronic debilitating lower back pain. He suffered with back pain for years — I think it was over 10 years. Correct?
Patient: Yes.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: When he first came to us, we identified discogenic back pain. We fixed those discs for him about a month ago. He contacted me and said he was having pain in his buttock, and we diagnosed him with piriformis muscle syndrome. He had his piriformis release done at Deuk Spine Institute. How do you feel today after your piriformis release?
Patient: Excellent.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: You still have pain in your buttock?
Patient: No. Gone.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Gone. Are you on pain medication that we gave you?
Patient: Uh, just the muscle relaxers.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Do you need them?
Patient: Um, no. Not really.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: You can stop taking them.
Patient: Yeah, I can stop taking them.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: But you can tell the piriformis pain is gone.
Patient: Yes.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: When did you notice the piriformis pain was gone?
Patient: Right after I had the surgery.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Right after the surgery it was gone?
Patient: Yes.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Tell me — how was life for you before you had your back fixed here at Deuk Spine Institute?
Patient: Well, I was suffering. I’ve been going to a doctor up in Michigan and I was getting spine injections. They were helping for a while, but it got to the point where they really weren’t doing any good anymore. That’s why I got a hold of Dr. Deuk. He was recommended by a neighbor up in Titusville. I got a hold of him actually before I even came to Florida, and we did most of the conversations online when he looked at my MRI and decided what the problem was, and then we set up the time to do the surgery when I came down.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Now, you said you’re from Michigan. Michigan has a lot of doctors up there. How come none of them could fix your back?
Patient: What they wanted to do — the next step after my injections — was to do the surgery where they actually cut into your vertebrae and splice your vertebrae together. Fuse them, I guess they call it. And that was the next thing they wanted to do. Well, both of my daughters are nurses and both of them said you really don’t want to go through that type of surgery. And that’s how I found out about Dr. Deuk — he offered an alternative to that type of surgery.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: The laser spine surgery as an alternative, yes. What’s life going to be like for you now that you’ve had your back fixed?
Patient: Well, I’m going to get back to golf again, which I didn’t do at all this year because I couldn’t. So I’ll be back to golfing and back to some of the outside activities that I used to do. Back to the gym, working out. Back to life like it was before I started to have back pain.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Is there anything you want to say in wrapping up this interview?
Patient: Everything went fine. Doing great. I like the idea of the non-invasive back surgery — rather than cutting up your back and your spine, it’s really minimum invasion. And I want to thank Dr. Deuk. It’s a pleasure what he did.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: You’re welcome.
The Better Way: Deuk Laser Disc Repair® & Deuk Piriformis Release®
This patient underwent two procedures at Deuk Spine Institute: the Deuk Laser Disc Repair® for discogenic lower back pain, followed approximately one month later by the Deuk Piriformis Release® after developing piriformis syndrome in the buttock. The Deuk Laser Disc Repair® is a minimally invasive outpatient laser procedure that treats the source of discogenic back pain without cutting, fusing, or removing spinal structures. The Deuk Piriformis Release® is a separate minimally invasive procedure that addresses piriformis muscle tears causing buttock and lower back pain — a condition commonly associated with prior disc disease and spinal stress. Both procedures were performed as outpatient surgeries with no hospitalization, no narcotic pain medication, and immediate relief following each procedure. Patients can begin with a remote MRI review and virtual consultation with Dr. Deukmedjian before traveling to Deuk Spine Institute.