More than 200 miles separate Pipestone, Minnesota and Pierre, South Dakota but what connects the two cities are two patients who suffered from a similar affliction. Tim Badger and Richard Roszel don't know each other, but their problem with nerve pain is a shared experience.
“It was a burning, a tingling, just like lightning going down your leg,” said Roszel.
“All of a sudden while I was doing work, I realized I couldn’t lift stuff with my left arm anymore!” said Badger.
Both men tried to find relief with conservative measures that unfortunately proved unsuccessful.
“Finally I went to get it checked and the place took an X-ray and said we've got to have an MRI,” said Badger.
“His MRI matched exactly what his problem was. He had a big disc herniation, which was actually compressing the spinal cord which is more worrisome, but also compressing the nerves coming out the left side and that’s exactly what the symptoms were,” said Gonzalo Sanchez, MD an orthopedic specialist with Avera Orthopedic.
“A herniated disc is a condition where the jelly portion of the center of the disc exits at a defect in the rim and protrudes into the canal where the nerves live, and pinches the nerves. That’s what usually causes the leg pain,” said Joshua Schwind, MD an orthopedic specialist with Avera Orthopedics.
“I was ready to do anything get rid of the pain,” Roszel said.
That meant a discectomy or surgery to remove the herniations. In Tim’s case, the herniation was in his neck and would also require a fusion of vertebrae to correct the issue.
“The operation actually is a two-part operation, one is to decompress it and make you feel better by taking the pressure off the nerves and the second thing is to get that level to fuse. The gold standard is what we call an ACDF for anterior cervical discectomy and fusion which is exactly what Tim had,” said Dr. Sanchez.
“The question that came up a lot before and after the surgery was, where did you have it done and everybody said Rapid or Sioux Falls? I said I had it done in Pierre and they just looked at me like they didn’t know that was possible,” said Badger.
“It means a lot to me that he trusted me to fix a fairly difficult problem for him, and also that his family was comfortable that it’s going to be done correctly and as good as it can be done,” said Dr. Sanchez.
Richard’s injury was in his lower back and over time, the space between his vertebrae got smaller and smaller. That herniation got so bad that Richard had to use a walker or be assisted by his wife just to get from one room to another. So Dr. Schwind scheduled a minimally invasive operation in Sioux Falls.
“In that surgery, a small margin of the bone is removed that gives you access to the ligament underneath. The ligament is either separated or taken out so that we can see the nerves. The nerves were gently pushed to the side and then you start plucking out that herniated disc material until the nerves are free and not under any more tension,” said Dr. Schwind.
”He said more than likely you’re gonna have instant relief and so he was right. I had the surgery and by 5 o’clock, I think I stood up and put weight on my leg and the pain was gone,” Roszel said.
As a husband and father to four kids, Richard’s health is extremely important and having relief from constant pain is a game changer.
“From the MRI, to the X-ray, to the surgeons, and the nursing staff, to the physical therapy, everybody was great, so I’m just super appreciative,” said Roszel.
From shooting pool to shooting pheasants, the same can be said for Tim who was able to get relief while also returning to both his hobby and livelihood.
“I feel great! Opening day of pheasant season all my rules seemed to be different than everybody else’s. He listed no lifting dog, no shooting shotguns; to be totally honest Dr. Sanchez let me borrow a light gauge shotgun so that I could still hunt because it was the 57th year that I had not missed an opening weekend and first two shots, I got two birds! So it’s awesome,” said Badger.
Orthopedic specialists like the team dedicated to back and neck pain are available across the Avera footprint. This model helps keep care closer to home while also providing access to experts when needed.
