1. I'm afraid to see the neurosurgeon because he'll just tell me I should have surgery.  Is Dr. Oh any different?

Most neurosurgeons are actually quite conservative about spinal surgery. In Dr. Oh's case, over 80% of patients referred to him are recommended or directed to nonsurgical treatments such as physical therapy and spinal injections. When surgery becomes necessary, his philosophy is to choose the least amount of surgery for the biggest gain.

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2. Shouldn't I go to Boston for my spinal surgery or brain surgery? 

The vast majority of cases can be performed with equal or greater expertise in Baystate by Dr. Oh or his partners. They have trained at the top institutions and in some situations, may even have more experience than their Boston peers in certain procedures as they may perform more cases on a per-surgeon basis. Being close to home is also advantageous for recovery and in case of complications. In addition, some patients value the fact that their surgery here is performed entirely by the neurosurgeon instead of having parts of it done by a residents in training. In the rare instance that you have a condition that can be treated with better skill in Boston, Dr. Oh will be the first to refer you to the right doctor.

 

3. Where does Dr. Oh perform his surgeries?

He performs all surgeries at Baystate Medical Center, Main Inpatient OR. Outpatient procedures such as lumbar microdiscectomy and anterior cervical discectomy are done there as well, even if the patient is going home the same day.

 

4. How long has he been in practice?

He has been in practice for 18 years aside from 8 years of neurosurgical training. 

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5. How many surgeries has he performed?

Dr. Oh routinely performs 6-7 surgeries a day and approximately 800 a year, placing him at the 90th percentile of neurosurgeons  nationally in surgical volume. Studies show that higher volume of cases is associated with better patient outcomes. He has completed approximately 8000 spine surgeries and 4500 brain surgeries.

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6. Will Dr. Oh be the one performing my surgery?

Yes, he personally performs all his surgeries from incision to closure. He even does the patient positioning, draping and the dressing at the end. He does not have residents or fellows performing any part of the surgery.

 

7. What is the typical success rate for his surgical patients? What about his infection rate?

It is 80-90%. Note that this pertains to the subgroup of patients that he has deemed good surgical candidates based on a patient's symptoms and correlating surgical issue on MRI. Dr. Oh will explain what the surgery aims to achieve and what it does not, so that you can make an educated decision. For example, lumbar surgery may alleviate pain or numbness down the leg but not chronic back pain from arthritis. His overall surgical infection rate is approximately 1%.

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8. How long will I be out of work for?

It varies from patient to patient. In general, it is 1-4 weeks for lumbar microdiscectomy or decompression, 2-4 weeks for anterior cervical discectomy, 4-8 weeks for minimally invasive lumbar fusion and 3-4 weeks for brain surgery. You can go back to work sooner if you feel ready.

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