Patient Story of: Murray Birnbaum

At age 68, I began playing organized baseball again after not stepping onto a diamond since my youth baseball days in the Bronx in 1964. For 35 years, I had managed chronic lower back issues, including spinal stenosis at the L3 and L4 vertebrae. Running six marathons in the 1990s likely contributed, though the condition was largely hereditary.

After playing eight baseball games in four days at a baseball camp in November 2025, the toll on my back, glutes and legs was so severe that I needed a wheelchair to get through LaGuardia Airport on my way home. Soon after, I experienced the sudden onset of left foot drop caused by severely compressed L5–S1 nerves. Facing the possibility of needing a permanent leg brace and never playing baseball again, my wife of 53 years, Gail, and I consulted five spine specialists before choosing HSS.

Through my trainer, I connected with orthopedic spine surgeon William D. Zelenty, MD, after reading his published research on spinal surgery outcomes. When I called his office, Dr. Zelenty’s administrative staff immediately recognized the urgency of my severe pain and foot drop and scheduled a consultation for the very next morning.

During that visit, we scheduled my surgery for June 19, 2026. The procedure went smoothly, and over the next four months I worked closely with Dr. Zelenty, physician assistant Esten Walker, PA-C, the seventh-floor nursing team at HSS and my HSS physical therapist, Thomas Villarino, PT, who guided my rehabilitation two to three times a week.

Exactly four months to the day after surgery, I was cleared of all restrictions and stepped onto the field for my first baseball workout. At 75 years old, I am officially Back in the Game® and training this fall for my 2027 baseball season, grateful to my wife, Gail, and to Dr. Zelenty and the entire HSS team.