Coastal Orthopedics named one of six in the nation for a new spinal cord study

Interventional pain management specialist Dr. Richard H. Bundschu with Coastal Orthopedics Sports Medicine & Pain Management is at the forefront of a possible shift in the way pain management physicians help their patients manage chronic neck and arm pain.

Dr. Bundschu is the principal investigator for the Nevro study — a landmark clinical trial to test the effectiveness of the Silicon Valley-based medical device company’s spinal cord stimulators in treating ongoing neck and upper extremity body pain. Spinal cord stimulators have previously been used to treat chronic pain in the lower back, torso and legs when pain medications, injections and physical therapy are ineffective.

“The whole idea is that this is not the first line of therapy,” Dr. Bundschu said. “It’s a very high-tech option for those people who have failed with other routes or treatments.”

Coastal Orthopedics was one of six locations nationwide selected to participate in the Nevro study, which began in June 2016. Bayshore Gardens resident Mike Daughtrey is participating in this trial and has experienced life-changing results.

After living with a chronic stiff neck for the past nine years, Daughtrey, 70, learned about the Nevro study while his wife, Donna, was being evaluated for a low back stimulator. He participated in a temporary nine-day trial in September 2016 before receiving a permanent stimulator in October.

Within 36 hours, Daughtrey’s nightly headaches disappeared, and he was able to turn his head left and right without pain. Prior to receiving the stimulator, Daughtrey couldn’t look up at the stars, drive without turning his whole body or drink a can of soda without using a straw.

“It was truly like an angel reached down and touched my neck and made it better,” Daughtrey said. “If I had to give it a percentage, I would say I’m 85 to 90 percent better.”

Four months later, Daughtrey is once again able to work a part-time job. He can ride the motorcycle that had been parked for nearly a year because he didn’t feel safe. And he can tilt his head back to drink a can of soda.

“It’s the things you don’t think of,” Daughtrey said. “It doesn’t wake me up at night. It’s been a miracle. I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t want to have it done.”

The neck stimulator resembles a pacemaker. A battery is installed above the hip and below the rib cage, in the area typically referred to as a “love handle,” while the electrodes are placed in the neck. An electric current is applied to the spinal nerves, which disrupts the flow of pain signals that travel to the brain. Patients are given a remote control where they can select a series of programs, ranging from one to five, depending on their level of pain.

“It’s electrical. It’s not chemical and the patient has control,” Dr. Bundschu said. “They are independent now.”

Enrollment in this trial is closed. Now, Dr. Bundschu will spend the remainder of the trial collecting data. He will meet with each of his patient’s every three months for the first year following implantation and possibly the second as well.

Dr. Bundschu worked with Nevro on two prior studies, including a low back study, which helped the company’s groundbreaking products earn U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval.

Last month, during a conference with 2,500 doctors, Dr. Bundschu learned the national study’s initial results. Although specific findings cannot be cited in an ongoing trial, the preliminary results showed a decrease in pain.

“I knew we had good results, but I didn’t know the results were that good nationwide,” Dr. Bundschu said. “The results of this neck and arm study are even better than the low back study.”

About Coastal Orthopedics Sports Medicine & Pain Management

Founded in 1973 and based in Bradenton, Fla., Coastal Orthopedics is home to 17 orthopedic surgeons and pain management physicians who maintain hospital affiliations with Blake Medical Center, Manatee Memorial Hospital and Lakewood Ranch Medical Center. In addition to three offices and two ambulatory surgery centers each serving Florida’s West Coast, Coastal Orthopedics’ board-certified and fellowship-trained physicians and surgeons provide patients with the very latest in pain and orthopedic treatment technology. The company strives to repair and heal injuries relating to the entire musculoskeletal system. For more than 40 years, our highly skilled staff of physicians and surgeons has treated patients in specialty care including sports medicine, joint replacement, pain management and rehabilitation. Patients can experience restoration of function both surgically and nonsurgically through the use of physician-guided strengthening, therapy, medications, injections and stretching. For more information, please visit CoastalOrthopedics.com or call 941-792-1404.

About Dr. Richard H. Bundschu

Dr. Richard H. Bundschu is an internationally recognized leader in pain management who is proficient with spinal injections, facet injections, radio-frequency vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty, and implantable spinal cord stimulators. He received his doctor of medicine from the University of Miami, where he also completed a residency in anesthesia and a fellowship in pain management. As a recognized expert, he trains other pain management physicians for The Spinal Interventional Society and maintains board certifications with the American Board of Anesthesiology, the American Board of Pain Medicine, the American Board of Pain Management and the American Board of Interventional Pain Physicians.