Neurosurgeon's Orgy

One of my most dinstinguished and cherished Practice Members brought me in an article (3/29/11) from the Wall Street Journal: "Medicare Records Reveal Troubling Trail of Surgeries." One of his more abused patients has had six surgeries, and finally turned down #7.

The story is mostly devoted to a neurosurgeon in Texas who, habitually, does multiple spinal fusions, in a short period of time, on many of his patients. The article highlights some of the resulting suffering that this has caused. It was my impression that the underlying implication is that the government should more closely monitor what doctors are doing. But, on other fronts (not a subject of this article), there are legislative moves to limit medical malpractice.

With the exceptions of unstable fracture, some cases of invasive bone cancer, and some severe cases of infection, spinal surgery, and certainly spinal fusion, is an unnecessary, barbaric procedure.

That's right, I said "barbaric." People are cut open, exposed to the very significant dangers of anesthesia reaction and nocosomial (from the hospital) infection, parts of bone and disk cut out and sometimes weird surgical devices put in, with tools that you would expect in a (rough) carpentry shop.

Results? Almost everyone who undergoes spinal surgeries, and especially fusions, get worse, often terribly worse. This, of course, is the "in" for further surgeries. I knew a man in his 40's who had had eleven (11) spinal surgeries. His life was a wretched haze of drugs and pain.

Have you been threatened with spinal surgery, or know someone who has? Despite the medical "facts" presented to you, despite the wagging of the Medical Voodoo Finger, have the common sense to say "No!"

Continuing with common sense, it is time to get checked for Vertebral Subluxation Complex. (No the neurosurgeon doesn't know what that is, and, for sure, cannot do anything about it.

What do you think?

Don Harte, D.C.
Marin Straight Chiropractor