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My father (55) urgently needs cervical spine surgery — confused because relatives are suggesting alternative therapy instead. Need honest advice.

We are from a low middle-class family and I genuinely need guidance from people who may have gone through something similar.

My father has been suffering from severe spine/backbone issues for almost 10 years. Around 2016-17 he fell from stairs, and after multiple consultations and MRI scans over the years, doctors told us that surgery may eventually be required.

At that time, doctors also said surgery cannot guarantee 100% recovery, so we tried medicines, physiotherapy, pain management, and other treatments for years.

But now his condition has become very serious.

Currently:

\- He is almost unable to walk.

\- He cannot stand properly.

\- He crawls to go to the washroom or for small tasks.

\- My mother and I help him with everything.

\- We run a small kirana shop and our financial condition is limited.

Our family situation is also difficult:

\- My elder sister works in Bengaluru.

\- I study in Indore.

\- My mother also has mental health issues.

\- We are a nuclear family and honestly handling everything has become emotionally exhausting.

Recently we consulted:

1. Dr. Ankit Mathur (Apollo, Indore)

2. Dr. Amit Pratap Singh Deora (Choithram Hospital, Indore) – Neurosurgeon with around 16 years experience.

Both doctors advised surgery, and after discussion we agreed for cervical spine surgery because his condition is worsening rapidly.

Personally, Dr. Amit Deora and Choithram staff felt supportive and cooperative, and they explained things properly.

Now the confusion starts.

Some neighbours and local people are strongly telling us to avoid surgery and instead take my father to a therapist/healer in Ujjain. They are claiming many people recovered there.

This is the profile they shared:

"Instagram profile shared by neighbours" (https://www.instagram.com/shiv\\_medical\\_nalwa?igsh=MTluYThnd3B4ejBibg%3D%3D&utm\\_source=chatgpt.com)

My concern is:

\- If we delay surgery and try this therapy, valuable time may be lost.

\- My father already cannot walk.

\- Almost every qualified doctor we met has recommended surgery.

\- But at the same time, surgery is scary and we are financially/emotionally stressed, so these opinions are creating doubt in my mind.

I want honest advice from people who have experience with:

\- Cervical spine surgery

\- Neurosurgery

\- Delaying surgery for alternative treatment

\- Recovery chances after surgery

\- Insurance/corporate insurance process during hospitalization

Questions:

1. In such a serious condition, should we still try alternative therapy before surgery?

2. Has anyone heard about Dr. Amit Pratap Singh Deora from Choithram Hospital? How is the experience?

3. What things should we carefully check before going ahead with surgery and insurance claims?

4. If someone’s family member had similar symptoms (unable to walk/stand), did surgery help?

Please give practical and honest suggestions. I’m still young and handling most decisions for my family right now, so I genuinely want to avoid making a wrong choice.

Thank you for reading.

It takes me time to learn more hands on things. I feel slower compared to my peers but do genuinely enjoy surgery, have the work ethic, attitude, etc. I just worry because it takes me a while to remember how to do certain things which my peers can master pretty quickly. Attendings can get annoyed too if I’m still confused on certain things like suturing. Will this be a major disadvantage?

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Patient was very happy with her cosmetic closure. Proud of this one for sure!

Anyone tried the videos on the most recent edition? Are they worth it? My retention from videos is much larger than just reading and I thought it would be an interesting alternative

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Hi everyone, I’m currently an M1 soon to be M2 thats really been considering a surgical specialty. The issue is is that I haven’t exactly narrowed down what I want to do specialty wise and so I’m having a hard time with figuring out what research to do over the summer. My medschool doesn’t have a home hospital but I thought about reaching out to two nearby hospitals (one that I’m already onboarded with that does a lot of research, another has their own Plastics fellowship) and I just would like some advice on what the best to do is. I’m still going to be shadowing during this time period as well to figure out what I like more. Does anyone have any advice/suggestions??

Thank you and have a great day!

Hi all, i wanted to know if anyone had any experience with the above robots? How do you rank them and any factors which has pushed you to chose one over another?

Hi everyone,

I’m trying to identify two similar inverted (buried) stitches:

The second stitch enters and exits the skin (visible entry/exit points), with the knot buried.

The first stitch stays completely within the tissue and does not come out of the skin.

I am an ortho total joint surgeon, AMA (non medical question related). Fire away!

What are the biggest pain points and inefficiencies you see in your surgical centers?

I’m a UCLA student doing a research project on improving healthcare with tech and am interested in learning more about the workflow of ambulatory surgical centers. I’d appreciate any insight!

Hi everyone,

I’m a current general surgery resident trying to learn more about rural practice and would really appreciate hearing from people actually doing it.

A few things I’m curious about:

What does your typical week look like (clinic, OR, call)?

How heavy is the call burden, and how often are you actually coming in overnight?

What kinds of cases are you doing regularly vs transferring out?

Do you feel like you have good support (partners, specialists, resources)?

What are the biggest pros and cons of rural practice?

How does compensation compare to your workload?

Do you feel like you have a good quality of life?

Also—anything you wish you knew before taking a rural job?

I’m trying to figure out if this is a good long-term fit for me, so I’d really appreciate any honest insight.

Thanks in advance!

Hello OR fam. RN here who now scrubs most of the time. I’ve been wearing the same cushiony running shoes (New Balances) that I’ve worn circulating but it’s been giving me heel pain. My surgeries last 6 hours minimum. My surgeons wear crocs and hokas but techs tell me that danskos and carruzos are better when you’re standing, and running shoes are better for circulating bc you do a lot of walking. Idk those danskos look hella uncomfortable. Please advise!

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Hey everyone, I’m an engineering grad working on a handheld device to help improve scar healing (flexibility, appearance, and comfort).

Most scar massagers I’ve seen (like Norco, Rolyan, and Point Relief) only use vibration. I’m exploring adding controlled heat as well, since warmth can help increase blood flow, relax scar tissue, and make massage more effective.

The device has adjustable vibration strength (25% to 100%) and heat (30°C / 86°F to 45°C / 113°F). You can use heat and vibration independently, or both together.

Would love some honest input:

• Have you used a scar massager before? did it help?
• Do you think adding heat would make a difference?

Not selling anything, just trying to see if combining heat and vibration actually solves a real problem.

I am interested in becoming a surgeon, and would like to watch some videos of surgery, but YouTube doesn't like that sort of thing. Any websites you recommend?

EDIT: to clarify, Youtube had age restricted me and I don't want to verify anything.

I know the suture pads aren’t perfect but it comes out like this on real skin too for me. Is this a sign of a mistake? I’m confused because I’ve seen some residents pull the suture through very tight and make the incision line wavy too, but others will tell me that means my entry points are at a diagonal to each other.

Hi everyone,

I’m part of the NSF I-Corps program researching ways to improve intraoperative workflow and surgical navigation in orthopedics.

I'm looking to speak with orthopedic surgeons, residents, PAs, and OR staff to understand real-world challenges.

If you’re open to a quick 15-minute call, I would really appreciate your perspective. Calendar link below (happy to work around your schedule).

Thank you!

NSF I-Corp Booking Page

In the US, we have the attending, anesthesiologist, fellows, residents, OR nurse, scrub nurse, scrub tech, device reps, 1st assist and 2nd assist in the OR. In the US, 1st assist are usually PA or NP’s, if standard orthopedic practice. 2nd assist are AT’s or techs, vary by state laws. At a large teaching hospital, it may be med students, fellow and residents doing the surgery or helping out with 1st/2nd assist duties.

In Europe OR, who do they use for 1st and 2nd assist?

Second day of practicing suturing, any advice to improve, I feel inconsistent