Dr. Edward E Rustamzadeh, MD, PhD, MPH, MBA, FAANS, FACS

Throughout my medical journey, Dr. Rustamzadeh became part of one of the most difficult chapters of my life. My condition involved surgeries, imaging, pain management, physical restrictions, braces, medications, rehabilitation, and ongoing evaluations. There were many moments filled with uncertainty, frustration, fear, exhaustion, and pain. At times, I questioned whether people truly understood what chronic pain can do to a person mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually. Today, I am 104 days post-surgery, and I can honestly say the progress I have made has been remarkable. There have been some very difficult days, but there have also been many great days filled with hope, healing, and gratitude. Recovery has not been easy — it has been a process, a battle, and a journey. Looking back at where I was compared to where I am today, I truly believe this neurosurgeon helped save my life. His work not only gave me physical relief, but also restored hope that I could continue… moving forward and regain part of the life I thought I was losing.

Day 5 Update Day five after surgery, and the pain is real. My thighs, quads, and abductors are on fire coming a live, and I’m icing regularly. My left foot feels a hundred times better than before surgery. The right foot is improving too, but not as much as the left. My back still hurts when I walk, but I can feel improvement. I’m on strict orders—no bending, lifting, or twisting. Pain is about an 8 in my legs and a 7 in my back. The staples hurt when I lie down, and changing positions—from laying to sitting, sitting to standing, and walking—is when the pain spikes. That lift chair I bought is a lifesaver. Without it, getting up would be a real battle. Before surgery, I thought my pain was a 10. Now I know what a real 10 feels like. When my legs and feet went numb before surgery, the pain eased, but the fear of losing my ability to walk kept growing. I couldn’t walk farther than the mailbox without help. At the store, I leaned on a shopping cart just to make it through. I knew I had… hit my limit. By day five, the anesthesia has worn off, and my head feels clearer. I’m on heavy meds at 8 a.m., 12 p.m., and 8 p.m., and I take Tylenol late at night—it really helps. My stomach has been growling, craving real food, but I stuck to broth and soups so I wouldn’t get backed up. Yesterday I finally had a good bowel movement, and things are moving again. My wife Jackie has been making me fresh juice every day, and taking time to assist me in sll my needs, my niece Jessica is right there for anything i need. I believe my success will be due to everyone God has placed in my path. I’m taking calcium, vitamin D, and protein shakes. This whole thing is a battle within a person—physical and mental. These last four days broke me down. There were moments I didn’t think I’d ever walk again. But right after surgery, I felt my left leg and foot improve, and that amazed me. Dr. Edward Rustamzadeh is a magician. He told me the last disc where the cage was being inserted got stuck behind the vertebrae, and he couldn’t get it out at first. He just happened to have a special tool that saved the situation. He said I was in trouble at that point, but the tool worked. I know the Good Lord was watching over me, and I was in the best hands possible. Everyone talks about Stanford and other big-name places, but I truly feel his whole staff—special props to Nicole—and Good Samaritan Hospital staff took the time to reassure me I was in the right place for my situation. I walked in with doubt, but I walked out with hope. So now I’m part robot—left hip replaced, three screws in my left pelvis, three in my right pelvis, a cage replacing the bottom disc, four screws at L4–L5, and a fusion from L3 to L5. I’m taking it one day at a time, one step at a time. Every hour I ice for 20 minutes and walk about 20 feet throughout the day. If anyone is looking for a neurosurgeon, I can’t recommend Dr. Edward Rustamzadeh enough. He’s the best in my book—truly a magician with God-given hands. Staying strong.

This doctor visit was one of the worst I’ve ever experienced. I went with my uncle for major surgery consultation. He rushed us through the visit, became agitated with questions, said we don’t want the surgery, should go for another opinion, and walked out on us in a very abrupt and rude manner. The entire visit took 15-20 minutes and we did not get a chance to ask many questions before he moved on to his next patient. This doctor has zero regard for the patient and I can’t imagine how he can provide quality care.

He is the worst. Stay away. I had to have a revision surgery because of him. A revision surgery is usually to fix a failed surgery. I'd supply the details but this website does not allow it. Suffice it to say it was a nightmare after his surgery.

I went to the ER of Good Sam with pain on my left side and having trouble bending, etc. Dr. Rustamzadeh was the neurosurgeon on call. When he saw my cat scan he came into talk to me. He said I needed to have surgery done --that my neck was bad. I liked him immediately and felt it was my lucky day to have him operate on me. Neck surgery is kind of scary with all the nerves, etc. The day of surgery I met one of the other doctors that would be helping him and was very impressed with him as well. He went over all that would be happening. The operating room was really something. Four huge monitors and very high tech. The operation was a success (it's been one month now)....and I am so lucky to have had this doctor. He is awesome!!!!!!

I just had my staples removed by Dr. Rustamzadeh for my L1/l2 stenosis repair. The surgery is healed up and the debilitating symptoms in my legs, back, & hips are completely gone! The nurses, clerical staff and anathesiaologist all raved about him before and after my surgery, and you can add me to that list. This is the third spine surgery I had with Dr. Rustamzadeh: he repaired a lumbar stenosis back in 2014, and repaired three badly staph-damaged lumbar vertebrae from a botched lumbar decompression operation in 2008 (by another surgeon) in an 8-hr operation in 2015. I was in considerable pain for 7 years and was taking 5 percocets a day. After that lengthy repair I went down to ½ a day, and sometimes none. Rustamzadeh does what he says and says what he does. He diagnosed my problems correctly every time, said that he could fix them, and then proceeded to do just that. The man is a miracle worker!

I had a broken vertebrae (C2), that was misdiagnosed at the emergency room as "stable", although I could feel a loose bone that did not seem to be there before. Dr. Rustamzadeh reviewed my CT scan on Dec 31, spotted the issue immediately, he saw me Jan 2 in spite of a busy schedule, and 8 days later performed a fusion (C2-C3) . Everything went well. Although I am not qualified to judge his work especially just 1 month after surgery, several things tell me that I was fortunate to be directed to Dr. R. by my worker comp insurance. The personnel of the hospital seemed to have a very positive reaction when they learned who did my surgery. Dr. R. is quite well known there and respected. Dr.R. is quite efficient, straight to the point, a keen sense of time management yet careful to explain & answer questions. His administrative staff is helpful and welcoming.

I had a neuro-stim implanted by Dr. Rustamzadeh (Dr. R.). I ended up in ER the next day. Could not walk. Had to crawl even to the bathroom. Dr. R. visited me in the hospital. I was released 3 days later because they couldn't find anything wrong. Dr. R. said I was just constipated. When I went in for a follow - up I told him I wanted it removed. I had what I can only call spasms in my legs even when the thing was off. Going over my history he kept saying I had this test done and that test done at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. I let it go for the first time, but corrected him later that all these tests were done at Stanford. He got irate, calling me a liar. I was very intimidated and confused what could cause such an outburst. He even put it in my medical record that I was a liar. I was shaken for quite a while trying to understand how and why of such an outburst. I remember asking him at one point what difference did it make. He went on and on about the differences, none of which I… understood. It took me a while to understand what had happened. I used to live in Rochester MN when I worked for IBM there. Our family went to the Mayo clinic for all of our medical needs while there. I mentioned at least some of this during our initial consult. He obviously made a mistake in his notes. He angrily told me to leave the office after his outburst. The guys got some problems. He seems very talented from what I read here, but he's really got some issues. I had the neuro-stim removed at Stanford. I certainly did not want this guy touching me anymore. I still have the muscle spasms in my legs and buttocks. I finally found some relief from then through an intrathecal pain pump. When the doctor put prialt into the pain pump the muscle spasms began to decrease.

Omg! What a great doctor/Surgeon he is. Suffering from spinal pain for over 2 years that no other doctors were able to find. Had been to several doctors, had so many MRIs done but no one was able to determine my problem. Dr Rustamzadeh is literally a God for me. My life savor. Many thanks to him and his wonderful staff!!!

Straightforward and get the job done with no problem