Pain Medicine Specialists - Montgomery, AL

""DO NOT SEEK HELP FROM THIS ARROGANT LITTLE MAN WITH THE PERSONALITY OF A DOORKNOB, RANKING A MINUS 10 ON THE EFFECIENT, ATTENTIVE, EMPATHETIC, CARING & PROFESSIONAL SCALE. HE DOESN'T GIVE A DAMN ABOUT HIS PATIENTS. HE SPEAKS VERY LITTLE & DOESN'T ELABORATE ON ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE. HE TREATS YOU LIKE YOU'RE A BOTHER TO HIM SIMPLY BY BEING IN HIS OFFICE. After 15+ yrs of chronic lower back pain relating to degenerative osteoarthritis in my lower back & after the epidurals, nerve blocks & nerve ablations performed by the wonderful Dr David Evans at Pain Management near Southeast Health, I decided to enroll in a week long trial for a spinal stimulator implant. Dr Evans didn't perform that procedure, so my Hughston Clinic physician referred me to little man because "he is the absolute best in the tristate area at this procedure". The procedure involves placing wire leads in your spinal column & they are hooked up to an external stimulator which sends electrical pulses to your nerves to scramble the pain signals that are sent to your brain, thus allowing you not to feel pain. It's an out-patient procedure & you are sent home with a remote control to have the ability to change settings to find which masks your pain the best. But I didn't go straight home, because like another reviewer, I crashed in post-op with a 58/34 blood pressure & a 34 heart rate. The nurses scrambled to push fluids in me, telling me not to close my eyes & to stay with them. I could hear talking & realized it was me but I wasn't making any sense. My son said that Marsella told them to send me to ER where I stayed for 3-4 hrs until I was coherent & out of danger. The insertation of the wires leaves you very sore & unable to determine if the stimulator is helping or not for the first 2-3 days of the 7 day trial. I felt electrical sensations down both legs but not my back (my point of pain) unless I arched it. I contacted the stimulator rep & was told my lead wires may have SLIPPED because they WERE NOT stitched inside my back! They were stitched at the place of insertation but not inside! They did a good job on my leg pain but very little on my lower back. 2 days later, the rep had me turn off the remote for 2 hours to give my legs a rest since my calves were sore from getting most of the electricity. 3 days before the wire removal, I could tell a little difference in my back pain, FINALLY. My adult son took me to his office to have lead wires removed after a week & to discuss how much it helped & whether I should have them surgically permanently implanted in my back. The nurse appeared happy to hear my pain level was lower & the stimulator had given me some relief. Little man came in then & took the wires out WITHOUT WEARING GLOVES, NOR WASHING HIS HANDS BEFOREHAND. He didn't discuss my week, the ups & downs or any relief I had obtained. He simply said, "I've decided you're not a candidate for the implant. It would be a waste of your money (I have 100% insurance coverage) & it would be A WASTE OF MY TIME". I couldn't even speak. My adult son asked what alternatives I had & he said DRUGS. We both said NO because I don't want to be dependent. My son asked if any surgery would help. Little man said, "I'm not a surgeon & can't discuss that with you". Maybe not, but he could have given me an idea, a direction to take, a referral. He said nothing else to me, so I said to my son, "let's go". He said, "let's get out of here, we'll find a second opinion". Little man said nothing as we left of the room. He is the most unprofessional "professional" I've ever met. PLEASE DO NOT SEEK HELP FROM THIS MAN. You will merely be a "waste of his time".""