“A miracle for me”: Back surgery that changed one man’s life

David Thomas expected to have some anxiety when he recently traveled from his home in Savannah, Georgia, to Cape Cod Hospital to have a Joimax procedure on his spine with Cape Cod Hospital Neurosurgeon Paul Houle, MD. Instead, he came without any concerns following reassuring conversations with Dr. Houle, the Cape Cod Hospital pre-op scheduler and pre-op screener prior to his arrival. His experiences and his interaction with hospital staff throughout the day of his procedure added to his comfort level.

“Everything was professional, and everyone was very knowledgeable about what they were doing,” Dr. Thomas, a retired obstetrician, said.

“Adrienne, the person who set this all up, my pre-op nurse Claire, my post-op and recovery room nurse Dianna, and the security guard, John, who was so kind to drive my wife and me back to the Anchor Inn after my procedure.”

Living With Pain

Dr. Thomas’ back issues and pain began a little more than three years ago. He had been diagnosed with degenerative lumbar scoliosis, a coronal deviation in the spine prevalent in older patients, and he thinks that a sudden twist of his body started his struggle with chronic lower back pain that has been almost continuous since then.

“The only time I didn’t have pain was at night,” said Dr. Thomas. “In the daytime, there was always pain at a level of 3-4 or 9 (out of 10 on a pain scale). “It really changed my life the past three years and I had just about given up.”

Dr. Thomas had many procedures that included lumbar decompression, SI joint injections, spinal fusion, and multiple spinal blocks, which didn’t relieve his pain. There seemed to be one area that was causing most of his pain. His neurosurgeon told him about the transforaminal endoscopic discectomy, or the Joimax procedure, that Dr. Houle performs.

“The endoscopic spine program (in Savannah) was about to get started and (Dr. Thomas’) surgeon asked my opinion about his condition and whether an endoscopic procedure would be beneficial,” said Dr. Houle.

Dr. Houle met with Dr. Thomas over a telemedicine visit and discussed the procedure.

“He had a narrowing of the hole where the nerves exit the spine,” said Dr. Houle. He had residual symptoms and didn’t want another big surgery. This would be a very small outpatient surgery under conscious sedation and no general anesthesia.”

“An Answer to a Prayer”

On December 1, 2022, Dr. Thomas had the Joimax procedure and has been pain-free since then. After a follow-up visit with Dr. Houle, he returned to Georgia on December 5.

“This procedure got rid of 95 percent of my problem and allows me to live a much higher quality of life,” said Dr. Thomas. “It was my last shot and it turned out to be a miracle for me, an answer to a prayer.”

He continues to spread the word to his friends about his experience with Dr. Houle and the staff at Cape Cod Hospital.

“I just can’t say enough from the start to the very end,” said Dr. Thomas. “The last person I saw at the hospital was a lady at the information desk on Sunday morning when I walked over to the hospital to get something to eat. She was as professional as everyone else. Everybody was proud of their job and gave the best patient care.”

“I’ve worked in multiple hospitals, have had a private practice and have been a patient in many hospitals, myself. I’ve never been in as good a setting as Cape Cod Hospital.”