Dr. Lawrence Lenke St. Louis MO

[dawn]

Hi,
Although I asked this question under the surgical thread, I would like to ask if anyone has had surgery with this doctor.
D.r Lawrence Lenke, Barnes Jewish Hospital, St. Louis MO

[jbrown3606]

Dr. Lenke

Hi, I live in Charleston, SC and have been referred to Dr. Lenke in St. Louis. Have you been to see him? Did you find out anything about him? Thanks

[Nanalulu]

I live in St. Louis and am using Keith Bridwell, one of Lenke's partners. Both are considered by the lay person (and I'm sure professionals as well) to be excellent scoliosis surgeons. I know one person who had surgery done by Lenke four years ago and is thrilled with the results. I work at Washington U and am partial to their medical school physicians.

Lynn

[jbrown3606]

Thanks for the information

Thank you for replying. I am still wondering if I want to go that far away from home but I am coming out there for an opinion on June 8. Do you have scoliosis? Are you having surgery? I have a 62 degree lower lumbar curve with hip and leg pain.

[Nanalulu]

I have kyphosis and a 50 degree scoliosis curve. I probably have two curves and Bridwell has proposed doing surgery involving T3 - L4. I didn't get a second opinion because Bridwell went over the pros and cons and since he was president of the Scoliosis Research Society etc I trust his opinion. We have been discussing this for the past five years. There has been a change over the past two years (probably because I got off hormones) which has pushed me to do this. I'm 99% sure of doing the surgery. The date needs to be set but will be between November 1 (2005) and January 15 (2006).

I'm a tennis coach so I always think "pain" or "discomfort" is due to activity and pretty much ignore it. I have gotten shorter and my waist is definitely uneven and also have rib shifting.

The only other place I would consider going (besides Barnes) is hospital for special surgery in NY (I'm originally from the Bronx) but since I live in St. Louis I'm not doing that.

Hope this helps.

Lynn

[TC78]

I know this thread is getting kind of old, but since I know how long it takes to get in to Dr. Lenke, chances are your appointment is still in the future.

I just wanted to say that Dr. Lenke performed my surgery 10 years ago, so I feel like I've known him my entire life. I started seeing him at Children's hospital in St. Louis & I have to say, for a teenager who had no clue about scoliosis, he was great. Both me & my mother always felt very comfortable with him, he didn't tend to sugar coat things, but he'd lay everything out there so you could make an informed decision.

Now days when I see him its over at his other office & I definately should point out that over the last 10 years he's gotten A LOT busier Could have something to do with being one of the best. Be prepared to sit in his waiting room for a long time!!!

Anyway, I just figured I'd chime in since I ran across this. If anyone wants more details, I'd be glad to share more about my experience.

[Sherri B]

Patient of Dr. Lawrence Lenke

I just stumbled upon this message board and noticed Dr. Lenke's name. Dr. Lenke performed scoliosis surgery on my son last summer - he was 13 years old at the time. He had about a 60 degree curvature between his shoulder blades and it was rapidly progressing. We had his surgery at Shriner's Hospital in St. Louis. All of our experiences prior to, during and after surgery have been truly awesome. For children under the age of 18, I would highly recommend Shriner's Hospital - a huge benefit for anyone who doesn't know is that there is no charge for services obtained at Shriner's - even major spinal surgery! It's a completely donation driven organization. As highly as I rate Shriner's, I rate Dr. Lenke even higher. He is an awesome surgeon and has performed amazing and life altering surgeries for children and adults. We live in Kansas City but the drive to St. Louis is well worth the treatment my son has received from Shriner's and Dr. Lenke.

I hope my comments have been beneficial to anyone considering Dr. Lenke as their surgeon. Feel free to email me personally at the3bryants@everestkc.net. I would be happy to discuss our experience further.

Sherri

[survivor]

Survivor

Dr. Lawrence Lenke from Barnes Jewish Hospital is my surgeon and I wouldn't have it any other way. I came to him with pre-existing scoliosis with hardware placement. I couldn't find one doctor in Illinois who would touch me with a ten foot pole. A friend told me about Dr. Lenke and yes it did take 4 months to get an appointment but it was well worth it. You will have a extended wait time in the office also.

When I was 16 I was diagnosed with a 42 degree curve and 3 months later it was 72. My first surgery was at Shriners Hospital in St. Louis. I had harrington placement and wore a body cast for 9 months.

When I was 38 I had my second surgery with Dr. Lenke. He did anterior/positerior revision, osteotomy, cages, hardware replacement and the recovery after a 13 hour surgery was excrutiating. I fell 5 weeks post op in the shower fracturing my right elbow and hurting my hip. Dr. Lenke to date still has not determined why my hip is in pain. He did run extensive test to find out, but no conclusions where reached.

I have 2 illiac screws that will be removed on 8/17/05 which is causing my lower back and hips to hurt. Dr. Lenke thinks this should help the hip pain.

He is a very caring doctor who will take the time to answer any questions you have. Keep in mind that he is also a teacher so there will be residents joining him in your exam. His office staff is the greatest. I cannot say enough about this group.

You are in great hands whith Dr. Lenke and his team. I wouldn't have went with any other doctor and keep in mind he is also on staff at Shriners Hospital in St. Louis.

Financially the surgery is very expensive, but if you go to Shriners it may be less of a burden. They for the most part will pick up the bill.

Dawn

[Brenda Springer]

DR.Lenke

Hi,
Although I asked this question under the surgical thread, I would like to ask if anyone has had surgery with this doctor.
D.r Lawrence Lenke, Barnes Jewish Hospital, St. Louis MO

Dr. Lenke, is a wonderful surgen, also he is a very caring doctor.
He will do anything he thinks will works. If he doesn't suggest surgery it will he doesnt think he can help you. He is very honest. I've had 3 operations with him. I wouldn' let just any doctor. My curve was 50% and the other was 50%- 52%, he now my back very straight. I had my last surgery 3yrs ago. My back pain is not hardly at all there now. The worst after surgy was where they took a rib out.