I had L2-5 done. I was 98% blocked. My neuro surgeon Bud Weiser did the surgery in a new Billion dollar hospital in Fargo, ND. His prior practice was in Leesburg! I was in the hospital for a week. Pain is basically gone...

I had spinal stenosis 10 years ago and had surgery in Wisconsin. Very simple operation from a nuero-surgeon, immediate relief and was golfing in a week. I did have to go through drugs, cortisone shot and physical therapy. The physical therapy only lasted a week as the therapist knew it would not correct a pinched nerve.
That being said, I had no issues other than the pinched nerve.
My wife is currently experiencing the same pinched nerve and spinal stenosis and also has so degeneration and slipping of a disk. She starts physical therapy this week and had an unsuccessful cortisone shot, our Florida Blue Medicare PPO plan requires physical therapy. The orthopedic surgeon has already told her the therapy will not work and she will have to have surgery. We selected Biospine Institute and were assigned Dr. Roderick Claybrooks. Her surgery will be more involved than mine; however, it is minimally invasive, takes only 35 minutes, is out patient, done at their Orlando office and recovery time will be less than traditional spine surgery. We have our fingers crossed that it will be successful.

I have had many epidurals from several pain mgmt Drs, Dr Pinnamaneri is by far the best.

I had a minimal invasive laminectomy done at Biospine in Tampa. They cleaned out between the spines. It was amazing. A few hours there and a week at home and I was perfect. Couldn’t play tennis for about 8’weeks or lift more than 5 lbs for 3 weeks. I was recommended To them by another tennis player and have sent someone else to them. Dr Reginald Davis did my Surgery.

If your insurance will let you pick any Doctor, I recommend Dr. Paul Jeffords in Atlanta with Resurgens Orthopaedics. I had spinal stenosis in L3 and L5, he is a top rated spinal surgeon in the USA. A fusion is the last thing you want.

I second Biospine.
 

2019 I had 2 fusions at Biospine by Dr. Bono. This was in Tampa, but highly recommend Biospine, but not for the administrative and billing staff. Sign of the times I guess, but support staff is hard to find these days. But the surgeons are top notch. If I had issues again I would head right back to Dr. Bono / Biospine. He got me out of a lifetime of pain.

Fifty years ago I was an operating room technician (scrub nurse) and scrubbed on various spinal surgeries with perhaps a dozen surgeons, both orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons—both of whom are allowed to do spinal surgery. On that basis, watching them all at work, I decided that if I ever needed spine surgery, I would go to a neurosurgeon for a surgery that was primarily about carefully freeing a trapped nerve from a disc, like a laminectomy, and go to an orthopedic surgeon for a surgery that was based on fixating the spine, like a fusion. Neurosurgeons excelled at using operating microscopes and tiny instruments, while orthopedic surgeons were better with the carpentry tools like chisels and screwdrivers. Also, a surgeon who performs that surgery many times a year with excellent results is crucial to success.

While I have your eyes: hands. I scrubbed on dozens and dozens of hand surgeries, mostly with two board certified hand surgeons, but also orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons. If at all possible, insist on a board certified hand surgeon for any hand problem. Neurosurgeons can do a fine job on a carpal tunnel release, and orthopedic surgeons can do okay pinning together a broken bone, but hand surgeons do both, and much more. Where an orthopedic surgeon is like a general carpenter framing a house, a hand surgeon is like a finish carpenter who does the fine work on cabinets and does a perfect job. With something like a severed finger, hand surgeons know how to sew together under a microscope digital nerves or digital arteries that are only a millimeter thick. Orthopedic surgeons don’t usually have that sort of training unless they have specialized in hands and been well-trained.

Nope to Dr P

After reading thru all the posts it seems that most of the people posting are people who play golf. Does playing golf tend to cause back problems?

off topic here but, what are you having done? he's my dr., too. ---- @OP--Barry Kaplan over @ orlando health

Pool exercise
 

Until you find a doctor, pool laps/exercise may provide some pain relief.

wow,...thx for info. good to know.

Biospine institute Orlando

Back-thank you
 

Dr Rajashekar "Mild Procedure"
 

I have had 4 steroid shots done by Dr. Raj. His nurse gave me the "Mild Procedure" booklet.
Kindly post your results once the procedure ins done.

My L5 has very little space if the column. It was so bad before the shot that my foot was painful. Found out that L5 nerves go to the foot. Only wish I knew that before getting an appointment with the foot dr.