At the first consultation I was quite nervous but was soon put at ease. Mr Ishaque is very professional, friendly and caring.

I have suffered with back trouble since my late 30’s. I would be fine for a while and then it would flare up and I would hardly be able to walk. I found standing on the spot or walking slowly was the worst and even had to resort to doing my food shopping on line because I just couldn’t walk around the shop.  I teach exercise classes and love what I do. In October 2011 I had another flare up but this time it wasn’t going away and I was really suffering. I would take pain killers just before a session but my back would be in complete spasm afterwards. I could hardly put one foot in front of the other. I decided enough was enough; it was interfering with my work and my passion for exercise. I made an appointment and went to see my GP. It was such a relief when she said she would refer me to a Consultant, Mr M Ishaque. I had seen my GP a couple of times over the years with lower back trouble and was referred to Physio, which I didn’t really find much help.

My GP gave me Mr Ishaque’s details to make an appointment, which I did. I also ‘googled’ Mr Ishaque and came across his website so read up on his qualifications and browsed through testimonials.

I picked up my referral letter and saw Mr Ishaque within a week. At the first consultation I was quite nervous but was soon put at ease. Mr Ishaque is very professional, friendly and caring.

An MRI scan was conducted a week later and I returned to Mr Ishaque for my second consultation. He diagnosed arthritis in my facet joints at Lumbar 4/5. No wonder I had suffered for years. He said that steroid injections could help my condition and I decided to go ahead with the procedure.

I found the website very useful because although Mr Ishaque explained the process, it’s not always easy to take it all in so it was helpful to refer to so I knew what to expect on the day of my procedure.

The whole team were amazing. Linda Hamilton, Mr Ishaque’s Secretary was always on the end of the phone if I had a query. On the day of the procedure my stomach was in my mouth, I was so nervous but the staff were lovely. Dr da Silva came to see me before the procedure and again he was very comforting, he did not rush and took the time to explain everything to me.

It’s now been 4 weeks since my procedure and I have got stronger as the weeks have gone by. I had instant relief from the pain and no more muscle spasms. I have returned to my fitness classes and feel that I am back to normal.

I have now been discharged but it’s a comfort to know that if, in the future, I need to see anyone about my back it will definitely be Mr Ishaque and his team. I am so grateful and would definitely recommend Mr Ishaque, he is very skilled and it’s obvious that he enjoys helping people.