Marion's Story
November 27, 2019Marion is Pain Free After Complex Spine Surgery
“ Before surgery, when the nurse asked me to rate my pain on a scale of one to 10, I told her it was a 12. Two days after surgery, the pain was gone.”
-Marion Richardson
Marion Richardson, 68, is no stranger to debilitating lower back problems. Since a workplace injury in 1983, he has undergone five surgeries, received countless injections, and had a neurostimulator implanted in his back to treat chronic pain.
But last year his back got worse and his leg became so weak that he could no longer move it. Although he is over six feet tall, Marion says he barely measured four feet when standing because he was doubled over in pain.
“I had to drag along my right leg and everything hurt,” he recalls. “It was like a thousand needles sticking into me, all at once.”
Marion thought he had reached the end of the line for spinal treat¬ments after 33 years, but he finally returned to the specialist who had helped him in the past, Zachary Levine, MD, neurosurgeon and medical director for Neurosurgery at Holy Cross Heath.
“Due to previous surgeries and degeneration of the spine, Marion had developed what is known as ‘failed back syndrome,’” says Dr. Levine. “His decline was dramatic from the previous time I had seen him.”
According to Dr. Levine, Marion needed multi-level thoracic decompression for a herniated disc, as well as fusion to relieve his pain, improve mobility and stabilize his spine—but the amount of scar tissue and damage from previous surgeries made this procedure incredibly complex and difficult. Thankfully, the world-class spine surgeons at Holy Cross Health were up for the task.
Expertise in Two Locations
 Zachary Levine, MD |
 Jay Rhee, MD |
 Philip Schneider, MD |
Holy Cross Hospital and Holy Cross Germantown Hospital physicians perform hundreds of spine-related orthopedic and neurosurgical procedures each year, offering patients an integrated approach to care for back and neck conditions.
“Holy Cross Health is at the forefront of innovative spine technology and technique,” says Philip Schneider, MD, Orthopedics, and medical director of the Holy Cross Hospital Spine Center. “Holy Cross Hospital has received Spine Surgery Certification from The Joint Commission and Blue Distinction Center+ Certification from Blue Cross Blue Shield.”
Marion found relief at Holy Cross Hospital in May after a four-hour procedure done jointly by Dr. Levine and Jay Rhee, MD, Neurosurgery, Holy Cross Health. “We performed a full discectomy and 360 degree thoracic fusion,” says Dr. Rhee, “And, because of our advanced spinal program, we were able to do this typically two-stage procedure in just one stage.”
For Marion, the difference in his pain and his life is “night and day.” He is working hard to strengthen his leg by walking now with a walker and doing physical therapy weekly, and he now can enjoy time with his wife of 43 years, Ruth, and both his family and church family.
My goal is to drive again and I am looking forward to maybe having a little garden next spring,” Marion says. Then he pauses, and adds quietly, “I thank God every day that my saints and angels at Holy Cross helped give me something to look forward to.”