“A clear communicator and a highly skilled surgeon, Dr. Stein did a great job ”
Dr. Stein did an excellent job of repairing my torn rotator cuff in January 2016, and I recommend him highly. I found him to be attitude-free, easy to talk to, clear and direct in his assessment of my condition, accessible, and highly skilled. I found his entire office staff tremendously helpful, respectful, and concerned in all my interactions with them. Dana Silver, Dr. Stein’s PA, is attentive and proficient.
Dr. Stein listened to me and never tried to sell me on having the surgery. He told me my decision should be “pain-driven”: I should only have the operation if, after having first gone through physical therapy for a while, I felt I couldn’t live with the pain and discomfort that remained. The near-full-thickness tear in my rotator-cuff tendon shown in my MRI might bother me less over time but would never heal on its own. At the outset, it was difficult to get through my workday, I could barely dress or lift a fork (I’m right handed; my right arm was the affected one), couldn’t raise my arm to 90 degrees, and lifting a bag into an overhead compartment would have been impossible. Dr. Stein told me at my first appointment that I shouldn’t hesitate to schedule a visit anytime I had questions. I took him up on this twice; both times it was easy to get an appointment and my waiting time at the office was minimal.
After nearly two months of PT, during which my discomfort lessened somewhat, I visited Dr. Stein again. He performed a couple of simple tests and told me that, although I had made some progress and could certainly continue PT, he thought that within a year I’d likely be back to have the operation. At this point I could see he was right and I scheduled the surgery.
In the OR, Dr. Stein was judicious and skillful. He did everything that was needed: no more and no less. He saw that the tear of the tendon was actually a full-thickness tear, that the situation was more severe than the MRI had indicated; he made the needed repair. He also saw that my biceps, identified as an area of concern in the MRI, did not require fixing; he left it alone.
Yes, there’s a lot of pain immediately after rotator-cuff surgery. I, truthfully, had minimal knowledge of that going in and asked no questions about it; my feeling is that post-surgical pain is to be expected and can’t be effectively prepared for. And Dr. Stein was quite clear (and accurate) about the expected recovery time—a more essential concern once you’ve decided to go ahead with surgery. Regardless, I was armed with effective meds for that early stage, well monitored by Dr. Stein’s office, and the pain began to subside over the first weeks.
Now, nearly three months out, my recovery—regular PT sessions and home exercises, monitored every few weeks by Dr. Stein’s office—is going very well. Stiffness and discomfort are minimal, and I know they’ll be gone soon if I keep up my end. Most important, I’m certain that my decision to have the operation was the right one, and I am completely satisfied with the work of Dr. Stein and his entire staff.
Comment - “ huge difference in the quality of everyday living. ”
dr. stein gave me two options on how best to treat me, one being a lessor procedure and the second option would intail 30 sessions of pt, dr stein advised me to go with the second option and as a result i feel great. i would be happy to refer anyone in issues like mine to him. thank you alan yorke.