I do not typically resort to submitting negative reviews of other physicians, however, in this instance, I find myself obligated to relay my experience with this practice to whomever happens upon this post, with the hope that it will prevent what happened to me from happening again.
This was my first experience with a board-certified neurologist, and it left a permanent sour taste in my mouth. Dr. Landrio and his Nurse Practitioner, Dr. Melissa Ochoa, made what I, as a physician, like to refer to as a "knee-jerk" diagnosis, based on insufficient evidence, and, in my opinion, a desire to identify a very rare condition. Without taking into account the very important and relevant history that I provided, Dr. Landrio decided that a single MRI study would be a sufficient, definitive diagnostic modality, and based on this he proceeded to inform me that I had, beyond a doubt in his mind, "spontaneously" developed a traditionally genetically-inherited terminal illness (Huntington's disease), despite a lack of familial genetics to back this up. Granted, the clinical signs were, in fact, reminiscent of said disease. The doctor did order a genetic test, and the Laboratory returned results to his office within 6 days of test submission. Neither Dr. Landrio, nor his staff, bothered to inform me that I, in fact, did not have this terminal illness. Instead, 3 weeks later, I decided to call the laboratory directly, and they agreed, based on my credentials, to release the information to me directly. The laboratory provided proof/confirmation of three different result formats (Fax, email, and USPS letter) by which Neurologic ASSosciates were provided results. During that 3 week period I developed suicidal ideations and nearly followed through.
In life, just because you hear hoof beats dos not mean you will necessarily be looking for a horse. It is true that there are many hoofed animals (ungulates) in the world, and any one of them could produce similar sounds, however a horse may be the most common producer of said sound. In medicine, when we see certain clinical signs, it is normal to put the most common culprit at the top of your differential list, then work your way down. When a doctor starts at the bottom of the list and works his/her way up, something is not right.
As a patient, or as a referring physician, I would not send a baked potato to be evaluated by this individual, much less a sentient life form. read more
