Patient Reviews: Dr. Henry Aryan

“Very personable. Explained test results thoroughly and encouraged questions. ”

“I came to Sierra Pacific Orthopedics in 2009 after various treatments to my back. I have been very active in outdoor activities such as dirt biking, snow boarding, football, and other various activities including my workplace where I damaged my spine. I have had multiple treatments at the facility. My first was an L5/S1 fusion with Dr. Aryan. At the time of this treatment I could barely walk due to the pain level. After the fusion the pain was gone and I regained most of my function. The next treatment with Dr. Aryan was a fusion of my C5-C7 vertebra. I had localized sever neck pain and pain radiating into my right arm. After the procedure the symptoms were gone. After each treatment I received physical therapy at the SPOC physical therapy center. The physical therapy activities helped me to regain my strength in the treated areas of my body. I have resumed my outdoor activities including bicycling 50 miles per week and riding my motorcycles. I would not have been able to have this level of quality in my life had it not been for the treatments I received from Sierra Pacific Orthopedics. I have recommend Sierra Pacific Orthopedics to some friends and will continue to do so.”

“I am a 68-year-old retired first grade teacher who has experienced years of low back pain.  My story began with yearly injections, which provided relief for a while; however, the injections began to be more frequent with less and less success. Dr. Aryan explained the procedure of decompression and fusion of L4, L5, and S1 vertebra in a thorough way that my husband and I could see and understand. The office staff and support staff that followed through after surgery and in the hospital stay were very helpful and informative.  Follow-ups in the office afterwards were positive and encouraging. It's been three months since surgery, and I've been wondering why I didn't have the surgery sooner.  Walking and flexibility have returned without any damage to my affected leg. I would definitely recommend Dr. Aryan and his entire staff who work together as a team to provide all the necessary information in order for a patient to make a decision regarding the health of their spine.”

“I've enjoyed the profession as a RCP (respiratory care practitioner) for the last 35 plus years and know the importance of compassionate care to patients. The care I received from Dr. Aryan, and his staff was exemplary from the minute I walked into his office through my last visit, which was an entire years worth of follow up care. I would highly recommend this orthopedic group to everyone. Thank you.”

“Excellent! Once my films were seen by Dr. Aryan it was only a matter of days before my surgery took place. Rosemary played a key role in keeping me informed and facilitating the insurance, surgery center, etc. Today I am doing great!  I am one year out from the surgery and have resumed all exercises I did before experiencing the worst pain I have ever had. Nerve pain is so debilitating and I am so thankful that my doctor sent me to Dr. Aryan who was so informative, personable, and skilled. Thank you and happy holidays!”

“After having severe pain for over two years and trying everything from a chiropractor, acupuncture, physical therapy to injections, back surgery with Dr. Aryan came next. I took my last pain pill 12 days after the surgery, did six weeks of physical therapy, and feel great. My husband and I walk two and a half miles six mornings a week (though I confess that we go just half way when the temps top 103 degrees). I now am able to sit on card table chairs to play bridge and in church pews for the entire sermon without wincing. Life is good these days!”

“I had lived with chronic back for more than ten years. I had tried physical therapy, chiropractic therapy, and pain pills, but the relief never lasted long. I had ridden horses since my early teens. I had accepted back pain as a part my life. But, last year my left leg began to go numb several times a day and after different physical activity or inactivity. My back pain and leg numbness grew steadily worse and debilitating. Regardless of my back pain and my leg numbness, I continued to ride horses and practice dressage, a riding sport that is physically demanding and requires both legs to ride. As the pain and numbness grew worse, I recognized that riding horses was becoming more dangerous. I realized my worsening physical condition was causing me to have trouble engaging in many other physical activities and undermining my quality of life. Despite the pain and leg numbness, I very much wanted to continue to ride, especially since I had purchased a great riding partner a year or so earlier (a nine year old warm blood dressage horse). So I was very motivated to seek treatment. I discussed my condition with my personal physician and sought treatment with other medical specialists and I came to the conclusion I needed to seek a surgical option. I met with Dr. Aryan in April 2012. After consulting with him, I believed surgery was my only solution, even though I understood that surgery might not help me fully recover the feeling in my left leg or cause my back pain to cease. But, I knew the only way I could ever possibly continue to ride my Beau would be to have surgery. On May 22, 2012, Dr. Aryan performed spinal surgery on me: fusing five vertebrae (L2 – S1). Twelve hours after surgery, I was up and walking the hallways of the surgery center with no numbness in my left leg! Ten days after surgery, I was walking a mile a day; a week after that, I was walking at least two miles a day with absolutely no numbness in my left leg. A month after surgery I was able to cease taking any medication for pain. Three months after my surgery, I walk at least two miles each day and I actually enjoy physical therapy! I can feel myself getting stronger every day with no numbness in my left leg. Best of all, I am totally pain free! I am very confident that I will continue to recover and once again I will be able to ride dressage with my riding partner, Beau. I am very thankful that Dr. Aryan agreed to perform surgery on me. I am also very grateful to him and his great staff for giving me a pain-free back, a numb-free left leg, and a future as an equestrian!”

“I heard positive feedback from people that I would run into as I would go shopping or at the bank. I heard that Dr. Aryan had a great method to correct back surgery. I decided to check it out. I made my appointment and met my doctor and said yes to have surgery. I did not feel pain after surgery. It felt great when I started to walk with no sharp pain coming down my back legs. Also, I had feeling in my right toes which I had no feeling at all for a long time. I felt so happy I had my surgery. My doctors came to see me and the hospital stay was great. Today, I am 23 days healing and so far no pain medication. Thanks again.”

“My experience with Jonothan and Dr. Aryan is great. Dr. Aryan is very good and thorough. I am happy to have found Dr. Arayn because he trained with the best. I really enjoy the service I received with Sierra Pacific Orthopedics. I have had a knee replacement with Dr. Hanson and am currently in the process of getting another one.”

“I had an accident where I hit a deer and rolled over a cliff. I had 83 fractures (two compound, hip and ankle). I was 29 then and am now 68. As you get older, arthritis sets in. I had an MRI in 2011 that showed I had disc damage  in my back causing a pinched nerve (numbness and pain in legs and lower back). Dr. Aryan had viewed the MRI and found the problem right away. He said it was up to me, but the pain would probably tell me when I couldn't go any longer without surgery. A couple of months later, I was back. Surgery was performed on October 31st 2011. A few hours after surgery, I was walking with no pain. Overall, it's 90% better. I can happily leave with that. Thank you, Dr. Aryan and Nick.”

“Dr. Aryan is amazing. He is my hero. His expert surgery has taken me out of unbelievable pain. I can't thank him enough for giving me life again. We are so lucky to have such a skilled and brilliant surgeon in Fresno. He also has a great team working with him.”

“I have had three different surgeries in the past six years or so by three different doctors on your staff, and I am always amazed at how effecient all three offices are with timing from the moment you sign in. You're scooped up to X-ray, then back to the office and into the room you're going to be examined in, and then the doc walks in does his exam. I've never gotten to read a magazine yet! It's all so well run—perfect!!  I work for a large group of doctors  myself, and our patients wait for hours!! Charts lost, the X-ray wait is long, the office help is rude. Your office is beautiful, clean, and all employees seem happy!!!”

“I first saw Dr. Aryan for what I had been told by doctors in Visalia was a problem with several of my lower discs. Fortunately, he was able to determine that it was NOT my back that was the problem. He referred me to Dr. Thaxter for a hip problem. Dr Thaxter diagnosed the problem, fully explained to me the options and risks, and ultimately gave me several shots. This has significantly relieved the pain so I can sleep at night without being awakened in pain! Most recently, I was again referred to Sierra Pacific Orthopedics for a problem with my arthritic knees. After X-rays and an MRI, Dr. Ghazal and his PAs have been treating me with shots in both knees to provide artificial lubricant. My last shots are scheduled for June, but i can already feel the positive impact! Less pain and stiffness, more flexibility, and increased ease of walking. Everyone I have encountered at Sierra Pacific Orthopedics has been friendly, helpful, professional, and given me a great sense of comfort and security that I am in good hands!”

“I waited a long time for a neurosurgeon to come here that had the training and knowledge and experience to help me and my spine. When I heard that Dr. Aryan was coming, I looked up his background and specialties and decided I would wait for as long as it took for him to move his practice here. He was definitely worth waiting for. I had already had four previous spine surgeries and now my vertebrae were kind of collapsing on top of each other. UC San Francisco told me I wasn't bad enough for surgery. The next year, I saw Dr. Aryan. He spent about 10 seconds looking at my MRI and said, "You need surgery." Finally, a doctor who understood what he was seeing and wasn't going to wait until I was "bad enough," whatever that meant. It was the hardest and most painful recovery of all of my five back surgeries, but I would do it all over again. Eight titanium screws and four rods later, I can't tell you how I feel. To have a stable lower spine, discs that are spaced like they should be and knowing it would stay that way forever was something I hadn't had since 1980. I would be lost without Dr. Aryan”

“I had previously had surgery in 2008. I usually went in yearly to check to make sure my tumors hadn't returned. I missed a couple years when I finally went in for my checkup. I was seen by Nick Marinakis, P.A.-C.—my favorite of Dr. Aryan's PAs. He was doing my physical exam checking my reflexes. When he got to the inside of my elbow on my right arm, he tapped it once and left the room to talk with Dr. Aryan. Nick came back in and said I needed to get an MRI of my lumbar/sacral area as well as my neck. I had no idea what he was looking for.  When I went in for the results, what a shock! I had two vertebrae in my neck, for lack of a better term, that were sort of free moving back and forth and were 3 mm from my spinal cord. I was scared to death. Nick said I could pick my surgery date, but SOONER RATHER THAN LATER WOULD BE GOOD! That phrase kept coming up. I had already had 5 spine surgeries in my lower back and had to learn how to walk again. I really didn't want to have another surgery. Obviously I had no choice. Spinal cord compression and paralysis was a frightening thought. I had surgery in October 2012. When Dr. Aryan came to see me before surgery, he put his hand on my arm and said, "Don't worry, we'll make things safe for you." That really hit home for me, but I have to say, this was the "easiest" recovery of all my spine surgeries. I'm sure that has a lot to do with the exceptional skill of Dr. Aryan, and I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Nick for a very thorough exam paying attention to the smallest clue that there was a problem. Thank you so much, Nick!!”

“Dr. Aryan fused three discs in my neck, C-3, 4, and 5. Cured everything except for right shoulder.  He sent me down to Dr. Thomas an orthopedic surgeon who did surgery on my right shoulder, did a right knee replacement, a couple of trigger fingers on my right hand, the little finger and index finger, over the last couple of years.  Everything is working great—no pain.  Four weeks ago, Dr. Thomas did surgery on my left shoulder and the long finger on my left hand. I'm still doing physical therapy, but getting better and better with each day. The doctors, PAs, nurses, and office associates are all very professional, knowledgeable, and caring. I recommend Sierra Pacific Orthopedics.”

“On behalf of myself and my family, we would like to thank Dr. Aryan and staff for all that was done at Fresno Surgical Hospital on July 8, 2013. The experience was nothing but professional from the moment I arrived until the moment I was discharged. I was treated with kindness, understanding, and also the remarkable recovery after surgery. I felt very little pain and was able to function normally almost immediately. Dr Aryan, you are truly blessed and would consider the cervical spinal fusion you performed on me a true miracle. Thank you so much, and may God bless you and your entire staff.”

“I just want to thank everyone for all of their help in trying to fix my chronic back problem. Thanks to Dr. Aryan, Nick, and Jonathan for all their advice and help with my back problem.  I would recommend anyone with back problems to seek help with the staff at Sierra Pacific Orthopedics.”

“I had lower back surgery in 2011. I am back to doing the things I love to do such as golfing, jogging, biking, and a lot more I can not thank Doctor Aryan enough for what he did , The staff is so awesome from day one I want to thank every one of them for there support and help. God Bless.”

“I have many health issues and ALL of these doctors have helped me. They are compassionate and so talented. I am so very thankful for Sierra Pacific Orthopedics now and for my future.”

“From the first moment my condition required surgery, I set up a meeting with Dr. Gill and Dr. Aryan. I had the upmost confidence in the kind of care I would receive.  Both doctors explained the procedures clearly. Their physician assistants and staff are a ten on my list.  My recovery from both surgeries, hip and back, has given me a quality of life that I'm thankful for every day!  At my age, 62, I can fully enjoy my grandchildren! Thank you, Dr. Gil and Dr. Aryan.”

“My experience with Sierra Pacific Orthopedics has been wonderful. The doctors are all exceptional. I was nervous about my MEG test but Dr. Wiens did a great job with very minimal discomfort.”

“At age 84, I was experiencing a lot of pain in my right hip and lower back. Dr. Ghazal was enlisted for his opinion. He recommended surgery, which I agreed to. The surgery was done at St. Agnes, where I received excellent care. I was discharged two days later. I elected home recuperation and was back in full recovery after a minimum amount of time. I resumed my normal activities in two weeks. Follow up x-rays provided evidence of excellent healing progress.”

“I would like to thank everyone at Sierra Pacific Orthopedics for the care of my neck and arm pain, which I have had for many years. Dr. Aryan and his staff are the best.”

“Great Doctors. I had surgery done by Dr. Aryan and Dr. Hanson. I have referred 9 people to Dr. Hansen and 1 to Dr. Aryan, all from my country club. They are all satisfied. I am 71 and had a knee replacement and two cervical spine fusions.  This has enabled me to continue to play golf, other activities, and enjoy life.”