Featured Patient Story: Felice Dorman

The Rollercoaster Ride of Back Pain

A family day trip to a theme park is meant to bring joy and happy memories. For one woman, Felice Dorman, one such day triggered years of living with constant neck pain; causing her life to spiral downward. Pain medication and other courses of treatment did not help, resulting in Felice quitting her job and almost becoming a recluse in her own home. However Felice was able to reclaim her life and confidence, after surgery performed by neurosurgeon Dr. Ziya Gokaslan.

The Spine Center in the Johns Hopkins Department of Neurosurgery provides comprehensive non-surgical and surgical treatments for the full spectrum of spinal disorders, including degenerative conditions of the spine, such as cervical or lumbar spinal stenosis, cervical or lumbar disc herniation, and scoliosis or adult deformity of the spine.

The center’s approach to degenerative conditions of the spine may include minimally invasive surgery, traditional open and spinal fusion procedures, motion preservation/disc arthroplasty/replacement, or dynamic stabilization of the spine.