Reviews

5 stars
from 10 reviews

Thank you Dr. Taghva for making this as painless as possible.

In September 2018, my ENT doctor sent me to see Dr. Taghva; as a result of the MRI taken after my ears were tested for possible hearing loss. It turned out that I had a brain tumor the size of a golf ball that needed to be removed; which most likely was the cause of some hearing loss. Both doctors thought it was benign, but due to its size I would need brain surgery to remove it. Needless to say, I was stunned and not really receptive to the idea. I never experienced headaches and was indeed in a bit of a shock. However, Dr. Taghva was very calm and patient with me and honest about the need for the surgery to remove the tumor sooner than later. I agreed to have the operation in mid-November. Once the reality of it set in, I scheduled a second appointment with Dr. Taghva to discuss how much of my hair he would need to shave as I was under assumption that it would be necessary to shave half my head. He calmly assured me that he would take as little as possible and most definitely would not be shaving half my head. I was so relieved... a silly woman thing. Dr. Taghva was sensitive to my concern, if perhaps a bit amused that it was my biggest concern. My compliments to Dr. Taghva on his precision in shaving only a minimum of hair for the operation. Fortunately I have a lot of hair and was able to easily cover the shaved portion. It was as if a hair stylist had been consulted before the operation, so precise was the area he shaved. Thank you Dr. Taghva and your caring staff that assisted in this operation and in my recovery process.

In addition, I would like to mention that I did my research on Dr. Taghva before handing him the drill. Not only does he have excellent eye and hand coordination due to his early years as a tennis champion and concert pianist, but he studied at the John Hopkins Institute with Dr. Ben Carson, the world renowned neurosurgeon, who was the first to successfully separate Siamese twins at the head. Dr. Taghva has a calm confident manner about him that puts you at ease. My primary care doctor also gave high marks to his ability and success rate.

Thank you Dr. Taghva for making this as painless as possible and for the continued follow-up to insure no reoccurrence of the tumor.

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  • Jeannette P.

Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Patient, Susan, Shares Her Story

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  • Real patient

Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Patient, Rick, Shares His Story

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  • Real patient

My highest recommendation to Dr. Taghva, Vanessa and the rest of the team.

I recently had major surgery on my cervical spine. Work was done from C3 to T1. I was suffering from severe stenosis and losing the ability to use my left arm and hand. Dr. Taghva performed the surgery and was assisted by his nurse practitioner Vanessa Stroessner. It’s been a few months since the surgery and I have full use of my arm and hand. I had always heard Dr. Taghva was an extraordinary surgeon and after being living proof I whole heartedly agree. I think one of the things that makes Dr. Taghva so successful is the fabulous team surrounding him. I have had over 30 surgeries in my life (old sports injuries) and have been attended to by numerous doctors and staff. Of all the people I have met in the medical/surgical profession the kindest, most responsive, knowledgeable and all around pleasant individual is without a doubt Vanessa Stowasser. You would be hard pressed to find someone as valuable as she is to the team. I actually look forward to follow up visits just for the opportunity to speak with her.

Gabrielle scheduled all the appointments and keeps the office running smoothly. She is much different than many other medical office managers because she truly cares.

I can’t forget the women at the front desk also. They are always greeting patients with a smile and kind words.

My highest recommendation to Dr. Taghva, Vanessa and the rest of the team.

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  • Pat B.

Helped with my pain 100%

I had a trial stimulator put in two weeks ago since I have scoliosis and spinal stenosis and helped with my pain 100%. Yesterday he inserted permanent stimulator inside me. I am so happy and love Dr Tagvha. I highly recommend him and has a wonderful bedside manner. Best neurosurgeon. Dr. Alexander Tagvha is my hero.

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  • Christina C.

Dr. Taghva is my hero.

Dr. Taghva is my hero. I had a herniated disc and spinal stenosis with pressure on the upper spine area. After 3 hours of surgery I was up and walking pain free right away. My recovery in just 2-3 weeks had me walking without any walker or back brace and I am feeling terrific.

Thank you so much Dr. Taghva.

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  • Real patient

Thank you, Dr. Taghva, for giving me a big part of my life back.

5 years ago I was sent to Dr. Taghva by my pain management specialist. He had very thorough tests done. He told me that it was his opinion that I had RSD aka CRPS. After much discussion with my pain specialist, I had a spinal cord stimulator implanted. I loved the relief it gave me. A few years later, I was back in Dr. Taghva’s office with excruciating pain that had spread. I was in so much pain that all I wanted was to not feel pain. Yes, I was ready to end my pain any way possible. Before doing anything drastic, I sought out help from Dr. Taghva, not really believing anything could help. I was so wrong. Dr. Taghva helped me with some disc degeneration. Then, he had the patience with me to tackle my CRPS. He replaced the non-working SCS with one of the newer ones that worked differently. Very quickly, I was amazed to find that my pain in the part of my body was up to 75 percent relieved.

Three months later, he implanted a second SCS to conquer the other pain I was still enduring. Thank you, Dr. Taghva, for giving me a big part of my life back. I actually smile again. The pain I have now is much more tolerable. I can live again, enjoying my children more, cleaning again, just getting out of bed, which I spent a good deal of time in.

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  • Susan H.

Completely pain free. It is unreal!

I have suffered for years with excruciating hip pain, More recently, I began needing ambulatory assistance, for without a cane, it became impossible to get from the bed to the bathroom. So, I saw another hip specialist and he deduced that the problem was in my back. He scheduled a MRI, and this time the disc bulge was located, not only in a difficult location to see with an MRI, but also in a difficult location to operate. The first back doctor I saw didn’t want to risk "aggravating any pre-existing issue." I had a lot of trouble sleeping due to the pain, which allowed me many hours on the iPad. It was there that I came across an animation of a Microdiscectomy by “USC Medical School.” With that information, my wife located Dr. Taghva whose background and confidence comforted me. I went ahead with the operation, and I am so glad that I did. Immediately after I awakened from the operation, I felt like I could go home. However, I was scheduled to spend the night in the hospital, not only for safety reasons, but to ensure I knew how to care of my back post-operatively. It has been two weeks and I am off the heavy drugs and completely pain free. It is unreal!

Thank you, Dr Taghva!

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  • Joseph R.

“I will be by your side” – Dr. Taghva

Doctors McFarland, Sieglen, Massoudi, and Madara,
I am writing this letter today to thank each of you individually and your organizations for allowing me the opportunity to have met a man of such as Alexander Taghva MD. I am the son of poor Scottish immigrants, an Ex Army Paratrooper, Ex Police Officer, and currently Vice President of a successful Finance organization and I have never asked any man in my 55 years on this earth for anything, not ever. It was in my time of need, at my most vulnerable that Alexander Taghva MD, reached out to me, and I asked him with tears in my eyes, “Doctor, Please help Me”! He shook my hand, gave me a hug and made me a promise, he promised me, “I will be by your side, and do the best I can to help Stephanie and you through this very troubling time.”

He kept his word to me, and has been there, every step of the way, and has greatly increased my wife’s quality of life to a point, that she is living a happy, vital and productive life again. I don’t know the proper way to thank your colleague, but I at least wanted to thank each of you for allowing me the opportunity to have met a man of such honor and integrity that as I write this my eyes fill with tears. I am an old soldier, and I understand the meaning of Oaths, Honor, Duty and Integrity and Dr. Alexander Taghva MD is the epitome of each one of those words. Hippocrates must be looking down on him and saying “Exactly, Exactly”.

He is a credit to your organizations and Profession !!!
Sincerely and humbly,

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  • James G.

Nothing Short of Miraculous

Since I have no formal medical training, I would like to provide you with my layman’s point of view of my case and the incredible journey I undertook. In early January of 2015 I developed a serious problem in my lower back and spine, which caused excruciating pain to the point where I was rendered incapable of basic normal function and activities. To give you a perception of the level of pain, I likened it to childbirth, the only difference for me is that with childbirth it would cease with the birth of the baby, and this pain was continuous. In retrospect there were signs and symptoms for a few months earlier, but they were tolerable; it was during this two-week period that I became incapacitated and sought care from my family doctor. Upon examining me in his office, his concern was immediate and unequivocal; I needed to go to the Mission Hospital Emergency Room for tests and further evaluation. After several hours and multiple tests, it was determined that I must be admitted to the hospital and a complete neurological examination and evaluation performed. Enter Dr. Taghva. It was late Thursday evening when Dr. Taghva came into my room and advised me that I was in need of immediate emergency surgery. Of course, at 85 years of age, hearing that you require back surgery is quite a shocking revelation unto itself. Dr. Taghva was clear, precise and detailed in his diagnosis and explanation of the procedure required to alleviate the pain and correct the problem, and conveyed the seriousness to me by advising me he was willing to perform the surgery the next morning. Having been reasonably healthy and strong throughout my life, of course I thought somehow I could summon the strength to overcome it, and my family and I asked Dr. Taghva if there were other modalities of treatment that perhaps could be beneficial. While he described things that could be implemented, he was adamant that surgery was an absolute necessity. While I asked if I could think it over for a couple of days, the medical team was equally as adamant that I could not be discharged in that condition. After careful contemplation, facing relentless pain and a total inability to function in any normal fashion, I asked the nursing staff to contact Dr. Taghva on Sunday afternoon (following my Thursday admission) and Dr. Taghva was kind enough to schedule me for surgery on Monday morning.

Dr. Taghva performed my surgery that Monday morning in January of 2015. When I awakened from the anesthetic after leaving the operating room, I was alert, felt comfortable, was in good spirits, and I noticed something amazing and stunning … I felt absolutely no pain whatsoever! The nurses, of course, as is general course of action after a significant back surgery, I suspect, offered me pain medication, which I promptly declined because I simply had no need for it. And, in fact, I required basically no pain medication thereafter. After a brief stay at Mission Hospital, Dr. Taghva ordered a stint of physical rehab; my physical abilities returned rapidly and I was discharged in a couple of weeks, in my opinion, in superb physical condition. Since that time, I have returned to all my normal day to day activities, and have had no pain, no discomfort, and no problem whatsoever with my back. It is now June of 2016, approximately 18 months post surgery.

While I understand I don’t have the expertise to describe the specifics of the medical procedure, I can certainly tell you from a layman’s point of view that considering the dire circumstances I was in, the surgery Dr. Taghva performed was nothing short of miraculous …and to say the results were amazing, impressive and spectacular might even be an understatement. For me, for all intents and purposes, Dr. Taghva saved my life, and the success of my surgery is a true testament to his skills and expertise as a neurosurgeon.

Beside possessing an educational background that would cause envy among even his most renowned colleagues, Dr. Taghva showed incredible care, concern and attentiveness to me throughout this entire process, including displaying a friendly personality, quick wit, and captivating charm. I am sure God was watching over me that night in the Emergency Room of Mission Hospital when Dr. Taghva walked into my hospital room and into my life. I know I was surely blessed because of it. I am forever grateful and indebted to Dr. Taghva.

Sincerely,

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  • Deloris C.
  • Ladera Ranch, California