Patient Story of: Allison Peyser

For two years, I lived with lower back pain. During that time, I went through two rounds of physical therapy and had four epidural injections, three facet injections and one radiofrequency ablation. None of them took away my pain.

This year, I knew I needed a new plan. My husband had a good experience at HSS last year, so I decided to see Zachary J. Grabel, MD, about my lower back. My MRI showed there was not much left of my L4-L5 disc. Dr. Grabel explained anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) surgery to me – exactly what I needed.

As I prepared for surgery, I was in touch with his surgical coordinator, who was always available by phone or email. That made getting answers to my questions very easy. The team at Good Samaritan Hospital, where my surgery was performed, was very competent and caring both before and after the procedure.

Last, but certainly not least, Dr. Grabel is an outstanding spine surgeon who did an amazing job – and my follow-up X-ray showed it. I am totally pain-free, and I only wish I had done this two years sooner. Thank you, Dr. Grabel.