Dr. Gregory P. LaGana - Chiropractor

Reviews 3

SA

Sandra May

For most of my life I have been lucky to not have any ongoing issues with back pain. For the last year or so, however, my low back has been very tight. When I woke up in the morning it was always terribly stiff. I would do some stretching exercises but the tightness would never go away. I have a fairly physically demanding job and felt that I was at high risk for injuring myself. I had never been to a chiropractor in my life. In fact, the thought of someone cracking my back was something that kind of scared me and it was not something that I wanted to ever do. However, I know several people who have been helped by a chiropractor so one day, feeling particularly stiff, I decided to see if there was someone in the area that might be able to help me. After seeing the outstanding reviews of Dr LaGana and reading that he used an instrument called an activator to make his adjustments instead of cracking the back, I called the office right away to make an appointment. I was happy to get a very helpful woman on the phone who was able to give me an appointment the next week on the day I requested. She took my insurance number to find out what my insurance benefits were so that there would be no surprises after my first visit. In fact, my plan required that I pay a deductible but the out of pocket cost for my first visits were reasonably priced and turned out to be well worth it. On my first visit, I was greeted by Tish who was the woman that I spoke with on the phone. She is very friendly and professional and seems to also take care of the billing. I didnt have to wait to see Dr LaGana who gave me a very thorough first evaluation which was accompanied by some fine jazz music in a very comfortable brownstone office. A little less than 3 months have passed since my first appointment. I am now due to go back after 3 weeks. After that it will be less frequent but I am always encouraged by Dr LaGana to let him know right away if I have any setbacks. I am so very pleased by the progress I have made. I now longer have that terribly sore back in the morning and can comfortably sleep in on the weekends now. As I write this in the afternoon, I have absolutely no stiffness in my lower back. I feel so much better. I am certain that if I did not address this, it would only get worse over time and that it would impair me from doing things and that I would be very likely to have an injury to my back which could ruin my ability work. I am so grateful that I found Dr LaGana and hope he stays in practice for a very long time to help me with occasional adjustments. He also gave me a home care routine with exercises to strengthen and balance my back and core muscles so that hopefully one day I will never need to come back. In the mean time I am grateful to go there and its always a pleasure to see Greg and Tish.

JU

Judy Hall

My husband Doug Hall was recommended to Dr. Gregory LaGana by our friend Mark Yoon, who was his patient. Doug came to Dr. LaGana at 76 years of age with lower back pain (which I had strained by lifting my grandchildren off a zip line) and a great deal of arthritic pain in both knees and hips. His orthopedic doctor said the knee pain was a result of bone-on-bone problems in his hips that could only be treated with cortisone shots and hip surgery. He thought his problems were just signs of old age. Decades ago Doug was hit by a taxi going 40 mph. He flew over the car, landed on his feet and walked another mile to his meeting. Two hours later I drove him for x-rays, which revealed no broken bones or problems. Over the years he developed a slight favoring toward one side, some problems with his feet and heels, and arthritis in his right knee from an old high school football injury, for which he underwent a knee replacement 7 years prior to coming to Dr. LaGana. In the middle of Dougs treatment with Dr. LaGana he had to undergo hernia surgery and recovery time. Dr. LaGana was always very respectful regarding his treatment by other doctors and helpful in aiding his understanding of the recovery process. We both have been very happy with the entire experience. Dr. LaGana straightened out Dougs hip with mild adjustments. His suggestions about lifestyle changes – investing in a good chair and using the ball – lessened Dougs back pain and restored some mobility. Dr. LaGanas enthusiasm with Dougs progress encourages us. He can see the progress in straightening the spine that we cannot see. But I do see that Doug is standing and walking straighter, and he attests that he is generally feeling less and less pain. We highly recommend Dr. LaGana. He exhibits a great blend of professionalism with a personal touch, even down to the way the office is run. He excellently mixes competent professional care and knowledge with personal interest and concern, making every moment spent with him very worthwhile. Observing that Doug and I work as a team, he allowed me as Dougs spouse to be with him in the treatment room. Dr. LaGanas sense of humor put us at ease and established immediate rapport. He makes it a point to always remember a particular point of reference about our lives about which we can resonate. We wish every doctor were as personally interested in us and as relational! Perhaps he ought to teach “bedside manner” on the side!

DA

David Wildman

I’ve been a patient of Dr. Lagana’s off and on for over a dozen years, and it is difficult to put into words what he’s meant to me. When I first came in it was after a severe episode in which my lowest disc had become subluxated and inflamed, and it hurt so bad that I was completely immobilized. He worked through my pain until I was feeling better, and then continued to help me with prevention by giving me home care exercises. Over the years I’ve had a few relapses and he’s always been there to set me back on the road to recovery. He has this uncanny ability to actually see your pain. By this I mean he can look at you and tell from your body language exactly where you are hurting. When he works with you on the table he seems to know when certain movements are going to hurt, and so he warns you ahead of time. He always explains everything he’s going to do before he does it, and why. He doesn’t simply crack your back and send you on your way as many other chiropractors are known to do. Consequently you have confidence that he understands how your body works, and that he’s doing everything in his power to help you feel better. In times when I’ve called on an off day because of an emergency situation and left a message, he makes it a point to call back personally to investigate the problem, and there is no doubt he’s doing it out of concern and caring for his patient’s well being. Finally, Dr. Lagana is also a delightfully real person with a great sense of humor. He gets to know his patients on a personal level. That means you often get cheerful wisecracking delivered with a wink in addition to sound medical advice. He’s also very knowledgeable about 60’s rock and jazz, and if you ask him to he will be glad to turn you on to obscure songs by the Byrd’s or Gram Parsons while you are lying there with an ice pack. By David Wildman