When Scott realized that it hurt to put his daughter on his shoulders, and everyday tasks like going to work started to get challenging due to weakness in his arms, he went to the physicians at DISC Sports & Spine Center for help.
The journey began with a thorough consultation with Dr. Rojeh Melikian that included MRI imaging and evaluation of his symptoms. During the consultation, Dr. Melikian showed Scott that his pain, numbness, weakness, and tingling were being caused by degenerative disc disease. The compromised disc in his neck was pinching his nerve, and the pain was not originating in his back as he had thought.
Together, Scott and Dr. Melikian decided to go ahead with the minimally invasive surgical option of an artificial disc replacement.
“Dr. Melikian was very kind and very helpful,” says Scott. “I felt very comfortable and safe with the decision, once we decided to go through with the surgery, that everything was going to be fine and I was going to be back to almost one hundred percent.”
Scott goes on to say, “After the surgery, I’ve gone back to work, I’m going to band practice every week, I’m able to play with my daughter again. ...It wasn’t the things I couldn’t do, it was the things that had become challenging [that were fixed].”
Dr. Melikian and the team at DISC Sports & Spine Center know the importance of living a healthy, active life without pain. If you have been diagnosed with degenerative disc disease, we encourage you to come in for a thorough consultation to decide if surgery is the right course of treatment for your situation.