I got an answer I didn’t expect. Dr. Gill was wonderful and I had a very pleasant visit with him. Here’s what he said.

First of all, he said that the surgery I need is a Disc Replacement. If I just have a disc removal, then I will still have pain. He showed me that artificial disc and it is a plastic material with two pieces of metal that connect to the vertebrae. It is inserted through a small incision in the stomach. People go back to work in only a week.

Secondly, he said that the best person in the world to do this surgery is an Austrian doctor that does surgery in Vienna. Dr. Gill said that he has done 100 of these surgeries while the Austrian doctor has done 1400. Also, only Version 1 of the artificial disc is available in the US, while in Europe Version 2 of the disc is available and that is what the doctor there uses. Also, Dr. Gill works and speaks with this doctor regularly. He is going to Vienna in January to do surgery with him. His practice is first class and the hospital conditions are very similar to the US.

I’m leaning towards taking this option. Who would of thought that the best place to get this done was only 150 miles from my home. I will contact the doctor tomorrow and see if everything will work. If so, then I’ll probably have the surgery there. If something doesn’t work out, then I might try to have it hear.

I’m so excited to have a definitive answer. Also, it is a surgery that should leave me with no pain and fully healed. That is awesome. Pray that I would have wisdom about whether to do it in Vienna or here.

Thanks for your prayers.