Patient Testimonials

After a 2.5 year reoccurrence of a herniated lumbar disc, I found myself with pain so intense in my right leg. I couldn’t stand up and put equal weight on both legs until I spent an hour trying to walk around my dining room table while holding onto the chairs. After that “warm up” exercise, I could then walk cautiously throughout the rest of the day. By evening, all I could do was go to bed early and start the entire process over again the next day. After more than a month of this cycle, I met with Dr. Hoel and he outlined some possible options like physical therapy, cortisone shot, or a micro discectomy. He reviewed each alternative and let me make my own decision. I was reluctant to proceed with surgery of any kind even though this procedure was less invasive than others and he had performed hundreds of these in 2022 with a high rate of success. He left me confident that the surgical option was the right step for me. Immediately after the actual surgery, I felt near total relief in my right leg. Although the days and weeks that have followed have come with some morning leg pain, by the 7th week post-surgery, I was nearly 100% pain free.

I certainly attribute my successful outcome to Dr. Hoel’s experience and skill, as well as his support staff, Christine and Julie. Any time I would call into his office, his staff returned my call promptly and offered advice to my immediate questions. On my last appointment with Dr. Hoel (7 weeks post-surgery), he expressed confidence that I should feel total relief with a little more healing time and offered specialized physical therapy if I wished to pursue that. Furthermore, he indicated that I should not experience a reoccurrence of this herniation again and that left me with more ease than at any time during the entire process. From this entire experience I have come to believe this area of medicine requires astute science, but also some degree of art as well. As a result, I couldn’t recommend more highly Dr. Hoel and his support team to anyone with spine/nerve issues.

I feel like a new person! I started experiencing pain in my hip, which led to tingles and numbness down my left leg. The pain was often so severe I could hardly walk, use stairs, sit or stand for more than a minute or two. It turns out I had a herniated disc. Dr. Omar was the only surgeon I met with, and I was immediately impressed by his energy, knowledge on the issue, and what it would take to fix it. My surgery went very well with zero issues, and I experienced immediate relief. I can’t say enough good things about Dr. Omar and his team, including his assistant Julia who was very responsive and helpful with scheduling and insurance questions.

Dr. Banks was excellent when our 14 year old daughter had to have spinal fusion and decompression. He made sure she was taken care of and did an awesome job. We are very grateful for him and now our daughter wants to be a doctor herself. Thanks Dr. Banks!

Dr. Erik Wetter performed emergency surgery for me in early August 2022. Surgery included; open treatment left femoral neck fracture with prosthetic replacement, a left anterior THA, closed treatment of left sacrum and pubic rami fractures without manipulation, and an ORIF left humerus proximal shaft.

On September 7th I had the first post-surgical appointment. Dr. Wetter was very encouraging in directing me in stretching my left humerus and shoulder to prevent a frozen shoulder. These exercises continued with OT and PT inpatient and outpatient care. The second follow up appointment with Dr. Wetter was in October. It showed additional healing, 75% with the humerus, and 80% with the pelvic area. I have been discharged from Dr. Wetter’s care after excellent, inspirational and encouraging care of my injuries and Surgeries. I truly appreciate Dr. Erik Wetter’s skillful care!

Dr. Eggers has provided wonderful care. He is compassionate, caring, easy to talk with and informative on treatment options and next steps.

I had 3 years of extreme discomfort, loss of strength, and pain in my left shoulder and arm areas. Finally at the age of 63, I went to TCO through a referral from my primary doctor. Prior to that, I saw two other specialists who recommended physical therapy, which helped reduce the pain until another injury brought it all back.

After reviewing my MRI, Dr. Hoel immediately came to the conclusion that a fusion of my C4-C6 vertebrae was needed to relieve the nerve pain and loss of strength that had been occurring. Dr. Hoel explained the process to me and set precise expectations, which were 100% accurate after my surgery. After 2 weeks, my nerve pain was completely gone. Now 6 weeks after surgery, my strength has returned to 75% and I can do anything I want to including golfing, running and weightlifting. This was the best medical experience I’ve ever been through. It’s truly unbelievable.

I was referred to Dr. Robert Brenner at TCO, and I couldn’t be more pleased with his care. I was having intense pain that would shoot down my right leg and prevented me from sleeping while also making it difficult to walk. Dr. Brenner started with taking x-rays, an MRI, and a series of Epidurals, and encouraged some Physical Therapy sessions. I liked his approach of not having to jump right into surgery. I ended up needing surgery, after finding that I had herniated three discs and pinched my sciatic nerve to the point my right leg hardly functioned. A few weeks after surgery, I was able to hike mountains in Colorado, and I am now living a very normal life with continued Physical Therapy and using proper lifting techniques. My right leg is still recovering from the nerve damage, and I thank God daily for the care I received from Dr. Brenner. TCO and Dr. Brenner have been so amazingly kind and professional. Having operated a family business with over 50 employees, my expectations of professionalism are very high. Dr. Brenner and all the staff at TCO not only met my expectations but exceeded them abundantly.  I highly recommend TCO!

I had an injury to my neck and after several visits to various providers, I was referred to Dr. Brenner. The difference was night and day. He talked me through my options, both from an educator perspective and as a healthcare provider, giving me a wealth of information. He also welcomed my family to ask questions. The time from the first appointment through 5 months post-op has been amazing, including calls to check in, post-op appointments and a genuine care on his part. You could not have a better team on your side!

After living with chronic back pain for over 20 years, I finally decided to seek help. After meeting with Dr. Wanderman, I found out that my scoliosis had worsened over 25 years to a 55-degree curve and included two herniated disks. Normal daily tasks had become extremely painful and I was preparing myself to accept that living with this pain was something I was going to have to do. Dr. Wanderman changed my life. He is professional, he listens, gives honest feedback, and is an advocate for his patients. My case was major. It included consulting other medical professionals, two surgeries and seven days in the hospital. I am now six months post op and I have zero (I never thought I would say that) back pain. Thanks to Dr. Wanderman, I can enjoy the things I love; spending time with my family, gardening, traveling, hiking, biking and so much more. This Doctor deserves so much praise, he saved my life!

I had gone in to TCO for arm numbness and was hoping to get a PT referral. I was not expecting to find out I needed a cervical fusion and was very surprised in the office to find out I was going to have a major surgery. This was due to the fact that I had spinal cord impingement on MRI. I was scared and nervous. Dr. Harris and his NP, Lisa Benedetto, spent time answering all my questions. I never felt rushed or hurried along during my appts. On the day of surgery, Dr. Harris stopped in to see me before surgery and spent time talking with me about what to expect during/after surgery. He wasn’t rushed at all and made me feel more comfortable. The surgery itself was honestly easier than I was expecting. I had numbness in my left arm almost all the time before surgery. After surgery, this has completely resolved. Pain management was very good after surgery. They were clear on restrictions and possible side effects from surgery, so I knew what to expect at every stage. Jenny, the care coordinator, was able to help me to coordinate disability with my employer and was very helpful. She answered questions left on voicemail or via email in a timely manner. I did call to ask a question a few weeks after surgery, and the response time getting back to me was very short. Staff at TCO is all great, but this team (Dr Harris, Lisa Benedetto, and Jenny) all surpassed my expectations. I would 100% recommend this doctor for any issues involving your spinal cord, neck, or back.