Spine Surgeon Dr. Michael Janssen Performs Surgery on World Champion Athletes

Professional offshore powerboat racer Rusty Rahm, owner of NO. 17 Wake Effects Superboat Unlimited race-boat, earned the 2016 Florida Championship title, the SBI National Series Championship title and took first place in the November Key West SBI World Championship title, earning him elite Triple Crown honor.

Rahm, who was suffering from constant and severe neck pain, reached out to fellow Multi-time World Champion racer, Dr. Janssen, this past March in hopes of getting relief. When an MRI revealed that Rahm was at risk for a spinal cord injury and lasting nerve damage, Dr. Janssen recommended an immediate procedure to relieve the pressure on Rahm's spinal cord and a TDR in his cervical spine. Rahm had tested and prepared his race-boat during the entire offseason with plans to compete in season opening SBI Space Coast Grand Prix in May of this year.

On March 28, Dr. Janssen performed a crucial surgery on Rahm, who felt immediate postoperative relief from his chronic neck pain. Walking out the day of the surgery, Rahm shared, "Dr. Janssen saved my life. If I had hit a wave or landed wrong while racing, I could have been paralyzed or had a life-ending event. I am so thankful for him."

This May, Two months after surgery, Rahm successfully competed in his first race. Rahm, who received a call from Dr. Janssen on race-day said, "It's pretty amazing when your surgeon checks on you before you race, to say hello and share words of encouragement."

Dr. Janssen has performed numerous surgical procedures on various athletes and members of the high performance boating community. His commitment to his trade and appreciation by his motorsports peers has led to years of successful procedures for athletes in pain.

CSO founder, Dr. Michael Janssen, is among the first surgeons nationally to perform TDR surgery and to have participated in numerous clinical studies. Since the FDA approved the ProDisc in 2006, he has performed 1,000+ TDR surgeries and trained 150+ surgeons worldwide to perform the procedure. He continues to lecture worldwide, most recently at the AOSpine Masters Symposium Cervical Spine in Shanghai, China.

SOURCE Center for Spine and Orthopedics