News

When Kumar Vasudevan, MD, a WashU Medicine neurosurgeon at Christian Hospital, meets with patients to discuss if spine surgery is right for them, he shares that their path to pain relief starts before he puts on his surgical scrubs and extends after the operation is complete.

Last fall, Pam Ludy, 65, took a trip with her sister to North Carolina. But Pam, who has osteoarthritis in both knees, had a hard time walking.

Since an athletic injury suffered in his late 20s, Bill’s hard-charging approach to work and sports clashed with severe, right shoulder problems. For decades, he did his best to ignore the pain. But when the agony reached an all-time high, Bill turned to the WashU Medicine orthopedic specialists at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital.