MURRELLS INLET, SC (WBTW) – A local woman who suffered from debilitating back pain is one of the first people in the nation to receive a new treatment and she says it’s changed her life for the better.
Carole Grossi was diagnosed with a condition called spinal stenosis more than three years ago.
She wasn’t able to make a trip to the grocery store, or even make a meal for herself before the pain became too intense to stand.
“I couldn’t do anything, totally incapacitated, I couldn’t drive because I couldn’t stand the pressure,” said Grossi.
Grossi said after seeing a family member had complications from surgery for a similar problem going under the knife wasn’t an option.
“They were talking if I had surgery, they’d have to put in the bars and screws, and that didn’t sound inviting at all,” said Grossi.
Grossi had resorted to taking pain medication; but the pain persisted and the meds left her feeling groggy.
So she decided to be one of the first patients in the nation to try a new procedure using the Superion Interspinous Spacer System.
It uses a laser guided system to implant a titanium spacer in between the affected vertebrae.
“It’s a minimally invasive surgical procedure that allows me to place a device into somebody’s back to help them walk further,” said Dr. Jason Rosenberg, the only doctor on the eastern seaboard who offers the treatment.
The new treatment is an outpatient procedure with just a small incision and Grossi says she was pain free and off meds just days after.
“And I would have saved someone in my family a great deal of pain for having it done, she’s been through four spinal operations now, and she’s still in the same amount of pain as what she was and this could have helped her a great deal,” said Grossi.
The procedure is covered by medicare insurance, but only a handful doctors in the nation have done the procedure.
Dr. Rosenberg has multiple offices throughout the Grand Strand. He said more than 1.2 million people are diagnosed with spinal stenosis each year and it affects primary older people.
