Testimonials

Testimonial for Dr. Rudolph Bertagnoli

Melba W. Benson, Ph.D.
Arlington, Texas
February 2010

One of my favorite quotes, which is framed in our home, reads:

Not until you have been in the deepest valley
do you know how magnificent it is
to be on the highest mountain.

The deepest valley we experienced in the year 2009 was on January 14, when my neurosurgeon in the United States told us that all of my lumbar discs were so severely deteriorated that no surgery could help and that pain management was my only hope for the rest of my life.

Fortunately, in May 2009, I learned about Dr. Bertagnoli and another surgeon in Germany who performed surgeries on people like me whose surgeons in the United States had given up on. Although I sent all my records for evaluation to two surgeons in Germany, it became apparent to me very quickly that Dr. Bertagnoli was the surgeon I wanted to perform my spinal surgery.

On September 11, 2009, Dr. Bertagnoli inserted artificial discs at L1-2 and L2-3 through an incision in my abdomen and inserted a Dynamic Stabilization System through two incisions in my back to straighten a curve in my spine. Following the surgery, I was in the hospital in Bogen for 11 days. That time might have been even shorter if I had not broken my foot in a fall at the hotel the first night we arrived in Germany. We consider my surgery a miracle, and now we feel that we have gone from the deepest valley to the highest mountain.

As a patient, it is important to me for a doctor to be technically competent and have a caring personality as well. Dr. Bertagnoli, Dr. Fenk-Mayer, Dr. Nickl, and Dr. Mysek (anesthesiologist) met those criteria. Dr. Bertagnoli’s talents as a surgeon are unequaled, and we were also pleased to find out what a genuinely caring human being he is. He radiates joy and kindness when working with his patients.

My hospital stay was a very pleasant one. I had a large, beautiful room with a patio, my husband had a bed right beside mine, and the hospital staff was excellent. Most of the hospital staff members were sufficiently fluent in English, and I never had a problem communicating with any of them. If we needed anything, the staff was right there, but we were not unnecessarily bothered 24 hours a day as I have experienced during several surgeries in the United States.

From the time we made the decision for Dr. Bertagnoli to perform the surgery, the assistance we received from everyone on his staff was remarkable. We received rapid responses to any questions we had about the surgery itself, transportation to and from the airport, lodging, etc., from Tim Vicknair or the appropriate person on the Patient Coordination Team, capably led by Renata Hein. Since we had not been to Germany before, this type of assistance was tremendously valuable to us. Even Dr. Bertagnoli’s website provided an amazing amount of information to help us prepare for the most important journey of my life.

The gratitude I feel to everyone associated with Dr. Bertagnoli and the Bogen Hospital is overwhelming. We can honestly say that we enjoyed our trip, which is not something we expected to be able to say about a trip to have serious surgery.

I have a life again, something I never would have thought possible. My pain before the surgery was so bad I had an “existence.” Although I still have some healing to do, I am thrilled with the progress I have made. Friends who have known me for years tell me I look 10 years younger, have the biggest smile on my face they have ever seen, and cannot believe how good I looked even from the first day we got home. People are also amazed by how good I looked in photos we took on the trip, some of which were taken as early as three days after the surgery.

Also, we will soon be going on a short vacation. I can remember the time before my surgery with Dr. Bertagnoli when I doubted that we would ever be able to go on a vacation again.

I have not been able to practice the profession I love as an Educator/Coach/Mediator for three years, but in 2010 I expect to be able to go back to work.

Thank you hardly seems enough to say to people who have done so much to change my life. May God richly bless all of you for what you have done for me and for so many other people.

Sincerely,

Dear Dr. Fenk-Mayer and Dr. R Bertagnoli,

I wanted to express my gratitude for the care rendered by your team in Germany, from the moment we arrived and got to befriend Peter, our personal driver, who along with his wife we spent our 28th wedding anniversary together having dinner in Straubing five days post op. Such lovely people, very helpful and genuinely sincere! The medical care was first rate, very impressive, and I should know as I am an Anesthesiologist, for 15 years in the OR, and the last 6 years as an interventional pain specialist! The quality of care, cleanliness, professionalism, hospital care, degree of quiet on the hospital floors was unreal! I was able to relax post-op in a manner unheard of in the USA! One can actually sleep in a German hospital, unbelievable. The discogram was such a lovely experience in your hands Dr. F-M, a test I vowed never to have, but you made it bearable, thanks!!! Meeting Dr. Bertagnoli, the night before surgery, was a pleasure. A very impressive , nice man, down to earth and not what I was expecting. We came to realize we have very similar interests. Perhaps some day we will meet up on the Nordschleife some day!!

My wife was treated very well and her stay with me made my recovery so much more bearable. The hotel was excellent, and provided hospital type beds that were adjustable which was absolutely necessary! We hope to return to Germany for a holiday and have fun traveling with a healthy neck . Even though I was driving on the autobahn in a BMW520d five days post op, i look forward to a real celebration, for the health and minimal pain for the most part I now enjoy compared to the life before my C4-C7, three level disc replacement!!! My job is very stressful, requires wearing lead aprons, glasses, head gear, all of which are quite heavy. They cause much pain, but still I am much better than before!!!!Some numbness remains but is getting better, certainly i could live with it, despite the lack of sensation. It is all about relativity, said a famous man!! I recommend this operation to all my patients, and certainly compliment the ProSpine team constantly, and despite the fact that my American insurance would not cover the cost of surgery, it was worth every euro!!! I am truly impressed and grateful for all that you have done for me, and hope to continue enjoying the activities that I used to partake in which made life so much more interesting and fun,

Sincerely from my heart and sole, as well as from wife and daughters, Ronnie J Kanas, MD, Bonnie, Kahlia and Chloe

Rick Froehlich M.D.

I’ve had chronic neck pain since 1995. I was an invasive cardiologist for twenty years. I did angiograms and stents, which necessitated wearing a heavy lead apron to shield against the radiation exposure during the procedures.

In 1995 I read an article in a cardiology publication about an epidemiological study showing a 6-8 % incidence of severe neck and lower back problems in invasive cardiologists wearing the lead apron for long hours. The article stated that the lead apron, which itself only weighs 30-40 pounds, lies at the base of the neck and exerts 300 psi on the spinal cord. Now there is also convincing scientific evidence for a genetic link to DDD (Degenerative Disc Disease). I saw an orthopedic surgeon in consultation who ordered standard x-rays ands a CT scan of my neck. These studies revealed severe cervical spondylosis (bone spurs) at C6-7 causing severe spinal stenosis (narrowed to 9mm). I was referred to Dr. Robert Watson in Los Angeles, California.

This is the testimonial of Luis Vte. Pimentel.

I am 35 from Valencia (Spain) and had surgery by Dr. Bertagnoli 4 years ago, I use to have back pain almost every day, I even had to spend all the day lying in bed because of the pain.

For 1 year I was trying to find the best solution to my back Scheüermann degeneration problem, but neither the gym nor the anti-inflammatories were the solution. I had three extruded and herniated discs, (S1-L5, L5-L4, L4-L3) and other less important extrusions at the lumbar and cervical levels.

A friend from the US, call Dr. Cabanella, who advised me the recent technique of surgery, from Germany, that it consist in replace the back disc herniated with discs implants. Suddenly a light bright like a star and all my prays were heard, the rest of my story It was like a dream, I was waiting for my surgery 1 month and finally I traveled to Bogen where I had surgery. Tow disc implants and tree back bone reconstruction was the result.

The only things I remembered of that time, were the beautiful nurses, the landscape outside, the rest of American friends patients and the small chapel near the room where I use to pray every day. In two weeks I came back to my country and in 2 months I was swimming in the pool and after 4 months of my surgery I was working normally even I take my skydive course and I jumped my first time just 4 months after the surgery. I wanted to try out the new implants ja ja ja!!!!!.Even they are resistant after the 34th jump I promise.

I have a new life now, I have no back pain, and I use to practice a lot of sports like running , surfing, scuba diving, skydiving ….

Thanks a lot for all.

28 December, 2009

Melvin W Jackson

Testimonial regarding Pro Spine/ Dr Bertagnoli

I began to have neck pain about 25 years ago @ age 40. It began with my first stiff neck upon waking one morning. I could not turn my head to brush teeth or shave. The pain went away after 4-5 days and I thought that was the end of it. 6 months later, the same thing happened, then 3 months later and finally every month I woke with a painful stiff neck. I accused my wife of changing pillows, then began the search for the pillow of my youth – harder, softer, bigger, smaller, foam, feathers, etc but nothing helped.

Finally, about 15 years ago, I had a trauma episode. We were in St Andrews, Scotland, where I caddied so that my wife could play the Old Course for the first time. That evening I began to suffer from a pinched nerve in my neck that was the most pain I have ever experienced. The first night I laid on my stomach all night with my head over the side to slightly relieve the pain. The next night I tried to stay up because the pain brought tears to my eyes and I knew I could not sleep. I drank a whole bottle of Scotch for the first time that night. The 3rd day I went to the emergency room @ the St Andrews hospital and was given codeine, which has since been my drug of choice. The codeine helped a bit. After a week of physical therapy and codeine, we began our drive back to Monaco where we were living at the time. About 1 month after the episode began the severe pain declined to a level of about 3-4 out of a 10 scale and I began to get numbness in the thumb and forefinger of my left hand. I could also feel pain the entire route from my back through my left shoulder blade, shoulder and elbow.

After a while I began to live with this reduced level of pain, which was 24/7 but I could get a few hours of sleep and even could play golf once/week but never more than that.

However, the last 4-5 years have been worse. The pain level went up to 5-6 and constant. I was having trouble sleeping and began to wonder if the pain would ever go away. Early in 2009 I decided to go ahead with surgery because the risks seemed worth it to me. I knew from a brother’s experience that I did not want to go the fusion route. I contacted a golf friend who had good success with surgery in Germany arranged by a patient advocate in California named Mark Mintzer. Mark is an extremely helpful shoulder to lean upon with personal experience of severe pain. Mark recommended ADR surgery by Dr Bertagnoli in Straubing, Germany, which is a beautiful town in Bavaria with a very good hotel and nice restaurants nearby. After stopping in Munich for an MRI and bone density test, my wife and I arrived at the Pro Spine clinic early on a Friday afternoon, 15 May, for a consultation with Dr Bertagnoli. We had a tentative surgery date for the following Monday.

I was surprised that I was asked to go through a normal hospital admission procedure and assigned a room when I was just there to meet the good doctor for a consultation. More x rays and blood tests and then his pretty assistant, Dr Fenk-Meyer, came into the room to look at my file and tell me that the good doctor would be along after day’s surgery. Dr Fenk-Meyer was very positive and certain that I should have the procedure because, if not, the problem would only get worse over time. The Dr Bertagnoli arrived, answered all of my questions (mainly I was concerned about dying from a slip of the knife in an important and crowded area!) and then looked at me and asked if I was ready to proceed. I thought he meant on the next Monday but he said, no, now. I looked over at my wife and she said that I must decide because it was my neck. I said OK and was prepped 2 hours later and finished the procedure around midnight. It was supposed to take 2 hours but took 3 because Dr Bertagnoli wanted to remove some of the bone spurs he saw when he was in there.

24 hours later I was up and walking around and 2 days later I was released to the hotel to watch TV. My biggest post-op worry was a very difficult time swallowing, which is a fear of mine. I was released from the doctor’s care a week after surgery and then spent next week having rehab/physical therapy at a spa a couple of hours away. Returned to London.

I write this testimonial at year-end, 2009, and am pleased to report that pain level in my neck is down to level 1, I can play golf, I have no shoulder blade, shoulder or elbow pain. I do have slight numbness in my left thumb and forefinger. My mobility has been restored and recent x rays show the artificial discs remain in the proper places.

The entire experience was very positive although expensive and not recoverable from my US healthcare provider. $50,000 is a lot of money but I can afford it and did not want this done by a beginner.

I hope that this writing is in some way helpful to the reader.

Doug K.
State College, Pa

At the age of 35, I was diagnosed as having two-level Degenerative Disc Disease in my cervical region. In August of 2001 I started to have symptoms of left arm numbness and tingling. That October I underwent a posterior cervical laminectomy. The recovery was extremely painful but the numbness and tingly began to fade. I was able to return to work in January of 2002. Working full time, I was able to finally feel normal again by the middle of 2003.

Dana Burk
Principal Broker, GRI
Salem, OR 97301
Direct:(503) 409-5861
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Dr. Krahl, Dr. Fenk-Meyer and Dr. Bertagnoli,

With both low back and cervical issues from my automobile accident from Nov-2004 and all the operations and physical therapie and everything, I am so much better after my L5-S1 fusion and the disc replacement at C3-4 and C6-7. My constant deterioration after the last 3.5 years and the magnificent change after the surgery in November and January. I can not thank you or Dr. Kitchel here enough. I'm not 100% back to normal, but I am functional and 80%. I was released from physical therapie 2 weeks ago and hope to start playing golf soon. I'm working full time, but still not back to normal for me. I can't thank you enough. Dr. Kitchel will be bringing the x-rays to Dr. Bertagnoli in Switzerland next weekend. I would not be where I am today without your help and thank you all immensly. I do have a friend that will hopefully be in your care soon. She's not quite ready for surgery mentally, but will be soon.

Linda M.
Fort Wayne, IN. USA

On January 2, 2006 I was rear ended while waiting for a light to change driving home from work. It was around 5 P.M., as it was winter it was just before sunset. When I felt the impact of the car hitting mine my head whipped around from the left to the right, and I heard a snap. I can still hear the sound in my head periodically and it reminds me of the sound effects they use in violent movies where someone is being murdered by having their neck broken.