Summary
A patient from Oxford, Mississippi had suffered neck pain for about five years, with pain radiating into his right shoulder and arm and some stumbling in his left leg, all getting progressively worse. Other physicians recommended fusion and referred him to a spinal deformity doctor, which could have meant rods and pins. Wanting a simpler option with a shorter recovery, he researched and found Deuk Spine Institute. Dr. Deukmedjian performed the Deuk Laser Disc Repair on three cervical discs (C3-4, C4-5, C5-6) through a single 4mm incision. Less than 24 hours later he had zero neck and arm pain, no pain medication or muscle relaxers, only mild stiffness turning his head, and felt comfortable flying home.
Transcript
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Good morning. I’m Dr. Ara Deukmedjian, CEO and founder of the Deuk Spine Institute. I’m here with one of my patients who traveled from Mississippi. Oxford, Mississippi, which I’ve never been to, but I’m sure it’s a lovely place.
Patient: Very nice.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: And why did you come to Deuk Spine Institute here in Florida?
Patient: I’m having issues with my lower back, shooting pain all the way down towards my elbow, as well as a little bit of stumbling while I’m walking with my left leg. I went to other physicians to look at my spine, and they wanted to do fusion and all kinds of other nonsense. I thought maybe there might be a simpler way of doing things. I did a lot of research and found Dr. Deuk here.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: And what did we do for you?
Patient: You guys did a C3-4, C4-5, C5-6 laser disc repair surgery.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Before surgery you had neck pain, correct? For how long?
Patient: It’s been ongoing probably about five years, and then pain going from my neck into my right shoulder and down my right arm, just getting progressively worse. That’s what made me say I’ve got to definitely do something about it.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Here we are less than 24 hours after your surgery, the Deuk Laser Disc Repair. You can see the incision right here, it’s four millimeters. Do you still have that neck pain and pain in your arm?
Patient: No, sir. Zero pain. Gone, completely gone. I’m in shock. Results better than I anticipated, which is a good thing, right? That’s what I’m here for.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: I’m not shocked. It’s what we expect to see typically, which is good. The procedure works, and that’s why we do it. It works better than anything else. Were you offered any other treatments?
Patient: Yeah, they wanted me to go look at a spinal deformity doctor, and possibly do rods and pins and all that kind of good fusion and everything.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Why didn’t you want to do the fusion option?
Patient: Long recovery time and just a more difficult surgery. And working in a house, I still want to have a good quality of life in the future.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Yeah, fusions have a lot of complications: scar tissue, bleeding, and pain. Are you having any pain right now from the surgery?
Patient: No, I’m not. Just a little stiffness when I turn left to right, but that’s par for the course.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: The stiffness is going to take some time to work out. You’ve had bad arthritis in your neck. Your discs were degenerated. You had degenerative disc disease, herniations, and bone spurs at C3-4, C4-5, and C5-6. We went in and fixed all three. You will need therapy to increase the range of motion. It’ll take time and you’ll get better. Are you happy with your decision to come to Deuk Spine Institute?
Patient: Very happy. I flew all the way down here from Oxford. I fly back Saturday and I feel much better flying on the plane than I did earlier. I’m not on any kind of pain medication, none of the muscle relaxants. There’s zero pain, so I feel more comfortable hopping on that plane.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: And we did it all through a four-millimeter incision. You could actually see the incision with the little tube going into your discs. I moved the tube from one disc to the next and we went to the back of the disc where the tear was, and I cleaned the tears up with the laser. That usually does the trick of getting rid of the neck pain when it comes from a herniated disc. And of course we unpinched the nerve roots going down your arm, so that’s why your arm is feeling better as well. I don’t expect any of that to come back. Be pain-free the rest of your life, just don’t injure the discs.
Patient: Absolutely. I’m definitely glad to get my quality of life back. That’s the number one thing.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Anything you want to tell your audience?
Patient: Anybody that’s dealing with the same issues I have, I definitely recommend coming to the Deuk Institute for laser surgery. It’s a wonderful thing.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: All right, well, congratulations.
Patient: Thank you so much. My dad lives in Tampa, and my wife’s up there in Oxford taking care of her stuff, so it worked out good to have my dad here to pick me up and drop me off at the airport tomorrow.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: Sounds good. Well, safe travels for you.
Patient: Thank you so much. I sure appreciate it.
Dr. Ara Deukmedjian: My pleasure.
Deuk Laser Disc Repair at at Deuk Spine Institute
This patient underwent the Deuk Laser Disc Repair for three cervical discs (C3-4, C4-5, C5-6) at Deuk Spine Institute, treating degenerative disc disease, herniations, and bone spurs that caused five years of neck pain and right arm symptoms. Dr. Deukmedjian moved a small tube from disc to disc through a single 4mm incision and used a laser to clean the tears and unpinch the nerve roots, avoiding the spinal fusion and possible rods and pins other physicians discussed. His pain was gone within 24 hours, with only mild stiffness expected to improve with therapy. Patients can submit their MRI for a complimentary MRI review and virtual consultation with Dr. Deukmedjian.