This man is fantastic. I had a very old, chronic L5-S1 disc herniation that had calcified (because other doctors were dragging their feet the injury could have been much more easily treated many years prior!) I had suddenly developed leg weakness and numbness and sudden, debilitating pain. I tried a new neurosurgeon suggested by a local hospital. He was rude, spent little time with me, did not even bother to see the CT scan I brought with me and suggested I see a chiropractor and scheduled an MRI almost a MONTH later! I was not happy. A co-worked suggested Dr. Samuel St Clair. I called the office and spoke with one of his receptionists (also very knowledgeable). She had me an appointment for the same week on Friday at 2:30PM. I arrive, I wait a bit, see Dr. St Clair and he spends nearly 15-20 minutes with me as I explain the past I have had and does a very thorough examination. He sits with me and goes over the CT scan I had and the doctor's report from my ER visit and says he wants me to get an MRI ASAP to see more soft tissue detail. His receptionist sits with me, get's my insurance info, validates my pre-cert and sends me to Wake Radiology for a 4PM appointment the same day! Then she asked me to come right back after my MRI, bring the disc with me and see Dr. St Clair again. I arrive back at Dr. St Clair's office at 6PM (on a Friday, mind) and he talks to me a bit more and goes over my MRI with me. He is concerned about the disc degeneration and wants the opinion of a good, conservative Spinal Orthopedic Surgeron, Dr. Mark Mikels, to make sure that a fusion would not be necessary. I see Dr. Mikels the following week and he says with the amount of remaining disc material and my age, he did not see it to be necessary. After that, Dr. St Clair's office set me up for surgery at Rex. The surgery went well. Dr. St Clair saw me before surgery, explained what was going to happen, saw me again the same day during recovery, called to check on my at about 8PM during my overnight stay and then again he saw me at 10AM the following day to check my progress. I simply could not have been more pleased. He is direct, charming, knowledgeable, and caring. He answers any questions you ask and respects your time. He is honest about possible results, risks and benefits. I never felt he was hiding anything. I never felt like I could not trust him. Simply a fantastic Neurosurgeon. read more