I cannot comment on the skill of this Doctor at all but I can say...I submitted a request for a…read morevirtual consultation as described on his website. I sent a request from said website. I never heard back from anyone. I called today and was told he does not do these consultations anymore now that the covid restrictions have been lifted. Someone needs to change the website and stop the false advertising. I live in NJ and can bearly walk so a in person visit is out of the question. I am a senior and all alone so.....Who do you believe or trust these days....not sure our medical system is in a sad state of affairs.

I was referred to a DO Dr. Varlotta from this office who put me through the most painful experience…read moreof my life, with absolutely no positive results. Furthermore, the procedure and practitioner overcharged and is not approved by medicare not insurance. I would find another office to trust you health and well being with.

I spent 3 years trying different therapies for relief from intense sciatic pain. After a failed…read morelaminectomy (authored by a different physician at a major NYC hospital), a Castle & Connolly physician recommended Dr. McCance. One month later, Dr. McCance surgically corrected the prior surgery. I was, within a few days following surgery, completely pain free for the first time in years. Now, 5 years to the month (almost) later after his surgery, I am still pain free. To everyone, he is Dr. McCance. To me, he is Saint McCance.

Dr Matusz has operated on me 3 different times for spinal stenosis and I think he is an…read moreextraordinary surgeon and an extremely compassionate doctor. He explained his procedures and my post operative care clearly and directly and answered all my questions quickly during recovery. I am grateful to him for the active life I still lead and for helping me to face the surgeries without fear . I recommend him to anyone with spinal issues l

The office manager gave me her card, then never returned a call…read more A nurse practitioner didn't read the medical notes and invented a story which made no sense. The attitude of the office workers was uninterested which made the entire experience a waste of time.

Staff is attentive and helpful Dr. Sood and her staff are both expert and supportive. The…read moreprocedures are explained in detail as they proceed and concern for the patient's comfort is unwavering.

Had surgery in 1997. Its 2024 and thanks to Dr.Elowitz i was able to see my son grow to the 31yr…read moreold man he is today and many more years to go . Thank you with sincerely appreciation [:

My mother and I are both thrilled with Dr. Elowitz' expertise. My mother is 84 years old and had…read morebeen in severe pain for three years. Her back pain radiated into her left leg and she had great difficulty walking, sitting and lying down. Her lifestyle changed dramatically and she could no longer keep up in activities with my father. My mother tried the usual treatments ie. chiropractic, physical therapy, acupuncture and epidural injections however did not experience any lasting relief. A laminectomy was the only answer. I researched surgeons for my mother as I am a registered nurse. I found three top spine surgeons including Dr. Elowitz in NYC and we scheduled consult appointments with each. Dr. Elowitz was the only surgeon who was confident that a minimally invasive laminectomy was the way to go. The other surgeons wanted to cut up and rebuild my mother's spine (including performing a fusion) which was way over the top for an 84 year old woman. My mother and I did not feel that she would survive the recovery period for a fusion which is very involved. We chose Dr. Elowitz to perform my mother's surgery. Her care was top notch every step of the way. From admitting to preop to operating room to recovery room to the hospital floor where my mother stayed overnight (as did I), everyone we dealt with was professional, competent and ready to help. Dr. Elowitz even has hospital privileges to admit his patients to the 15th floor at Weill Cornell which is a post surgical floor with only private rooms and views of NYC and the river. We were very impressed. Dr. Elowitz spoke with us before the surgery, numerous times on the day of the surgery and checked on my mother at 7:00 AM the day after the surgery. He gave us as much time as we needed to answer all questions and told us to contact him at any time if we needed him. The surgery went well. My mother is presently 10 days postop and feels much better. She no longer has tingling down her leg. Dr. Elowitz says that my mother's nerve was damaged over the past three years and that she will continue to see improvement over the next few months as her nerve repairs itself. My parents have been going for walks all over the neighborhood since her second day postop! My mother could barely walk before the surgery from her bed to the bathroom. We absolutely made the right decision to go with Dr. Elowitz for surgery. He obviously is capable of performing a more intensive surgery (as the other surgeons we consulted suggested) but he took into consideration my mother's age and type of recovery that she would experience and performed the perfect surgery for her. I highly recommend Dr. Elowitz. He is a highly competent neurosurgeon who happens to have a wonderful bedside manner as well. Edward Butler, NP: My mother and I are very impressed with the competence, practical knowledge and professionalism of Ed Butler, who is Dr. Elowitz' NP (Nurse Practitioner). My mother is 84 years old and needed a laminectomy. I am a registered nurse and helped my mother chose Dr. Elowitz as her neurosurgeon. We spoke with Ed Butler who took a through history before we saw Dr. Elowitz. We also met with Ed at the two week postop visit before seeing Dr. Elowitz as well. Ed treated us with respect and responded to all of our many questions. Ed has worked in spine surgery for quite some time and has a wealth of experience to draw upon. My mother thought that she was having an allergic reaction two days postop and we called the office. We were put through immediately to Ed who considered my mother's symptoms and gave recommendations. Ed realized that my mother was experiencing throat tightness due to residual soreness from the breathing tube that had been inserted during surgery and was not having an allergic reaction. I had told my mother the same thing but she had to hear it from Ed, not me. A few days later, my mother called Ed with another question and he promptly called her back. All too often, it is very difficult to get in contact with medical personnel after surgery. The patient seems to be forgotten. That is not the case with Dr. Elowitz and Ed Butler. They make their patients very comfortable and assure them that they are always available for problems or questions.

I found its care to be of excellence and professionalism, helpful, and progressive. I want to…read morethank, in particular, occupational therapists, Lauren, and Nikki and equally my physical therapists, Thomas and Rachel. I also want to thank everybody who answered the phone and worked at the desks in the reception area at check-in and for scheduling. There are so many that I rather not say individual names at this time in fear leaving somebody out unintentionally but I certainly want to give kudos to Oscar and Edgar who I almost always checked in with as I was checking out actually because they would schedule my following appointments at checkout. Everybody you meet there will be kind to you and of course you will show them respect!! i've been discharged because I've progressed well and my Medicare expired, but I will be going back early winter for more advanced therapy as my osteoporosis starts to reverse after my injection plan which starts within weeks. I look forward to seeing them again. Thank you HSS. I most highly recommend this world renowned HSS, Manhattan. I'm sure all the other branches are great also but I'm focusing on Manhattan because that's the only one I knowon 70th St., York Avenue. It's also right next to the actual NYP Cornell hospitals so very convenient and you can make two appointments same day! Wishing good health & blessings to all I've mentioned above plus Dr Brian Page and his ass't Brian also! Barbara T. UES

Specialty hospital for surgery on the hand/foot/bones, sports injuries and more. Parking is in a…read moreseparate building, traffic flow is drop off/pick up by the FDR highway. Elevators are slow and open different sides depending on the floor. Not every doctor has a post-appointment helper at that site - some call you back. They have MRI and x-ray machines here and top-notch staff. Inside the hallways aren't all straight - a lot of angles and turns, and not always easy to find the right room/space but the nurses are super helpful. Doctors, somewhat less so and only a few minutes before they recommended another appointment. It's very busy, though, and a lot of waiting or time between appointments since there's a lot of people seeing the doctors. They also have a number of sister sites, including one in NJ across the bridge.

I have been seeing Dr. Patel for about a year and a half now and frankly, she is amazing. Not sure…read moreabout the experiences others have had whom have written bad reviews, but I have NEVER had a bad experience. I have a herniated disc in my neck which often flares up and causes me severe pain in my arms. After seeing countless doctors (most of whom told me to just "take advil") Dr. Patel was the ONLY doctor who actually provided me with REAL treatment that decreased my pain and improved my quality of life. She sat with me and took her time explaining my options. During my epidural procedure she talked to me the entire time and told me exactly what she was doing. She is extremely knowledgeable and cares about my well being. I am so fortunate to have found her and my spine also thanks her.

Never met her. A fellow and a resident came in. Explained I was in horrendous knee pain. Ordered…read morex-rays that were not approved of. No one gave any other suggestions about what was to be done if anything. That was an absolutely wasted time and money. I have had knee problems for 40 years and at times have been to physical therapy etc or given something like meloxicam but absolutely zilch. Not even a follow up call from the office to tell me the x-rays were denied. My husband begged me to see someone - well I picked the wrong doctor's office.

I came here a few months ago and left feeling incredibly disappointed by Dr. Duarte. As time…read moreprogressed, I became increasingly disappointed with the entire office. Medical care: I saw Dr. Duarte for foot pain. First time i saw him, he was very distracted and answered his personal phone. Then, he sent me for an MRI. When I went back the second time to review the MRI results, he was over an hour late to our appointment and said "yeah I have other patients". Upon glimpsing over the MRI, he said "you have dead bone in your big toe". He advised me to stop running, to stop wearing high heels and stop doing anything that caused me pain etc. and offered to go over shoes I wear with me to ensure comfort. When I asked for physical therapy to regain movement in my toe, he said "I don't prescribe that when the bone has atrophied like that". At 32 years old, limiting me in this way led me to get a second opinion. The second doctor identified the issue and many months later, I'm doing PT to address it. I have since regained mobility in my big toe and can enjoy sports again. Approval for an MRI: I called 4 times so someone would get back to me and left multiple voicemails when following the right IVR process. I eventually selected a different number, got to a person who said "oh we never check that voicemail". Billing: of course, several months after I saw Dr. Duarte, I find out they didn't bill my insurance correctly so I "owed" a $400+ bill. All in all, with the exception of one person who cared about the billing issue, I wouldn't recommend any aspect of this practice and definitely not the doctor who showed such indifference to his patient's problem.

I hurt my knee at the gym, was in pain, and was barely able to move. I called the answering service…read moreearly the next day in distress. Dr. Guillermo Duarte called me back before office hours and saw me later that same day! After the exam, he anticipated my needs by authorizing his staff to give me letters: one for my employer stating I needed to wfh and one for my gym so I could freeze my membership. He also gave me a referral for PT, and my prescription was promptly sent to my pharmacy. My stress and anxiety were greatly reduced after getting a diagnosis. My situation could have been a whole lot worse if I had to move around, possibly falling and injuring myself further. Thank you, Dr. Duarte! I have seen Dr. Duarte and others here before. It's usually easy to get an appointment. The wait time in their modern, pleasant office is usually minimal. They have an X-ray on the premises operated by Mike, who is friendly and professional. The lady at the front desk (who was in training) was sweet and helpful and prepared all my documents for me. She asked whether my pharmacy had changed, and it had. I am really grateful they were able to help me again.

Dr. Baaj working at Banner University Hospital in Phoenix at the time, performed a spine fusion on…read moreme in 2021 from my pelvis to T10, I'm a male, age 62 in 2021. After 2 weeks during after surgery follow up I asked him why I was tilting to the left, he said all my muscles were cut and I would have to wait for 2 years for my muscles to get strong enough to straighten me back up. 3 months later the rods came out of the couplings and had to go back in for surgery to put them back in. Over the 2 year period I was having a lot of trouble because I was tilted to the left. After 2 years I asked for it to be fixed because I was having to much pain, and Dr. Baaj responded that no surgeon would ever go back in to fix it because I was high risk and should look into getting a lift placed in my left shoe to straighten me up. I did so having a foot specialist determine it would take a 7/8" lift to equalize me. The lift never helped, so I was not only living with pain but also was getting depressed because I had nothing to look forward to. I moved to San Diego in December 2023 and started going to a pain management doctor, he decided to send me to see a Neurosurgeon for a consultation in mid 24, thinking he could assist with all the pain I was having at T10. He was unable to assist but said I should see Dr. Mundis, an Orthopedic Surgeon at Scripps in La Jolla. Dr Mundis said he could help, I was under the impression that he was going to do something around the T10 area, but he informed me that he was going to pull out all the hardware from my pelvis to T10 and install new hardware from my pelvis to T3. He determined with testing that I was not high risk and he promised I would once again be straight and if I wasn't he would go back in and fix any issues. I actually had tears in my eyes because it gave me hope. Just as a note, I was actually straight, looking front to back before my surgery with Dr. Baaj, but from side to side I was a mess. I went through the new spine fusion in Oct 24 and as promised I was perfectly straight. I highly recommend Dr. Mundis for severely deformed spines. To close, I put down that MAYBE I would recommend Dr. Baaj for future surgeries, because advancements in technology could assist Dr. Baaj to better insure the spine fusions turn out the way they are supposed to turn out. I may have been a difficult case, but Dr. Baaj never once offered to correct the fusion after he realized I was tilting to the left. 2nd, he took all my hope away when he said that no other doctor would ever go back in to fix it, so I lived with it for 3.5 years until I found out otherwise. You may turn out well with Dr. Baaj but I lost all confidence in him. If any Doctor ever wanted to view the before and after views of Dr. Baaj's work and the results of Dr. Mundis's work, all they need to look at are the full body X-rays. I suffered for 3.5 years and had it not been for a caring pain management doctor, Dr. Patel who actually cared about getting me some relief and getting me off of morphine I would still be suffering because I was not looking for another surgeon because Dr. Baaj told me himself that no surgeon would ever go back in to fix it. These comments are true to the best of my memory.

Horrible. Basilar Invaginarion. Failure & my daughter got MRSA & Sepsis & is on life long…read moreantibiotics. We noticed green infection right away f called Dr. Leslie Cohen Plastic Surgeon made us wait until our 2 week visit to see her & sis not perform blood work. We listened to them & she suffered thru many months of treatment ,intubation opening & cleaning the wound,surgery for lumps pic lines & still years later the surgery failed & no one will touch her because of the poor surgery that was done by Dr. Baaj & Dr. Leslie Cohen. She has no life because & neither do we. They promised she would be better but they made her worse. I felt confident when we first met them now I'm sorry I entrusted my daughter. Cohen wasn't even Board Certified when she did the surgery we found out later & we traveled from Pa to N.Y. & she never had the equipment when got there. We made trips there for nothing. She was very disorganized & never showed compassion. Being a fool I even bought her flowers as a thank you gift. Yellow because she said she like yellow flowers & had them at her wedding. I'm not mean but I'm so hurt what they did to my daughter & no one stood up for her or helped her. We couldn't get a lawyer because when they found out who her parents were they wouldn't take the case. Up until then they were all into it. Guess they have a lot of political pull also. Even within the hospital their lawyer was brusk with my husband but I bet if it was her children or grandchildren it would be a different story. Even after all these years I had to say something because eats away when she can't sleep because she hurts so badly & her neck is twisted. They fused her neck so she can't turn it screwin it are loose f she's always in pain & no one can or will help her. I curse the day I entrusted my daughter to these drs.

I have tremendous admiration for Dr. Theodore Schwartz -- for his talent, intelligence, dedication,…read moreand extraordinary skill as a surgeon. Dr. Schwartz performed my first surgery in 2018, and he did an exceptional job. I recovered quickly, had no complications, and my prolactin remained under control for many years. Eight years later, I needed another surgery. By that time, the situation had become significantly more complicated, but I trusted Dr. Schwartz so much that I followed him to another hospital so he could perform my surgery again. He agreed to take on my case, and I know now that I made absolutely the right decision. I was fully informed about the possible risks and complications beforehand. I understood that this was not a simple case, but I also had complete confidence in Dr. Schwartz. He is incredibly knowledgeable, experienced, and precise, and it is clear that he truly knows what he is doing. My surgery on June 8 went well, and I am continuing to recover. I am incredibly grateful to Dr. Schwartz for his expertise, dedication, and care. If anyone in my family or among my loved ones ever faced a similar situation, I would not hesitate for a second to recommend Dr. Schwartz. Believe me, my case is far from simple, and I know how important it is to have a surgeon you can completely trust. Dr. Schwartz is truly one of the best in his field. I am deeply grateful that he was my surgeon.

Very attentive surgeon and knowledgable man. Would highly recommend him for neurosurgery. He saved…read moremy mom with her prolactinoma. The surgery went very well and she has no post op issues

I had A horrific car accident in 2018 was beyond petrified to have the neck surgery due to four…read moreherniations and a pinched nerve in my neck, interviewed eight Spinal surgeons the moment I met Dr. Lebl I felt I was in good hands. I had the surgery on election day of 2022 was released the next day. had zero pain in my neck from the surgery. It took me four years to get the courage to have the surgery wish I would've met Dr. level from the beginning

I had what should have been a routine discectomy with Dr. Lebl. One week after surgery my back…read morelooked like the skin had been attached to the wrong place (not just according to me, according to a plastic surgeon I consulted). Dr Lebl insisted this was normal and it would 'resolve' itself. 5 weeks after surgery the skin had come loose and filled with fluid (a seroma, extremely rare in properly done discectomies), which started leaking and got infected, necessitating a second surgery after which I carried around a blood bag and a suction machine for 2 weeks. In order to re-close the wound properly the plastic surgeon had to pull paraspinal muscles over my spinal column and now I have a significant and permanent lump on my lumbar spine. After the first surgery Dr Lebl did not follow up with me unless I called him or emailed him multiple times. After week 1 (at which point he had seen the wound closure) he didn't follow up at all. At no point did he ever mention that a seroma was a possibility or that I should be careful. If he had it's possible this wouldn't have happened, or it could have been caught before it started leaking and got infected. Throughout the entire process he was unresponsive, unsympathetic and seemingly uninterested in anything I was going through. There are many wonderful orthopedic surgeons in NYC - do what I wish I had, and pick anyone other than Dr. Lebl.