Dr. Gerson Alcantara Criste, MD

I really liked Dr. Criste, bu his PA was HORRIBLE!!! I will never to back if I have to see her again.

Helped me with back pain and sciatica. Relief lasted approx 3 months

good Dr

I had great experience with Dr. Criste's clinic all around. It is pretty obvious that patients who gave him negative feedback are addicted to pain medications and clearly Dr. Criste wants no part of that. If you are hoping to find a pain doctor who will keep you hooked on narcotics, Dr. Criste will disappoint you. But if you really want to get better without relying on addicting drugs, you wont find a more knowledgeable and compassionate physician.

I saw Dr. Criste last fall on three occasions. First was the initial appointment, when he agreed that epidural spinal injections were the best course of treatment after complications following a spinal fusion. I had been in so much pain I had difficulty walking. I'm in my mid-thirties and have so much living left to do but have the body of an 80 year old. The next time I saw Dr. Criste was in the procedure room. When I got off the table, the first thing I noticed was that I could walk easily and without a limp. It brought tears to my eyes. This doctor is a master of the needle! I had a second injection three weeks later. Afterwards I was able to do things I had not done in a couple years, simple things like shopping that I had once taken for granted. Doing household chores was once again on the list of things I could do. I felt that Dr. Criste had given me my life back! The injections have worn off and I have another appointment next week to discuss further options. Dr. Criste has been very kind and compassionate. His bedside manner was also gentle. One of the nurses told me to make sure to let her know if I needed more numbing medicine because Dr. Criste did not want anyone to be in pain. I was given as much as I needed and my second injection was nearly a pain free experience. I have not relied on this doctor for pain medication, that has been something my primary doctor has taken care of. We are very fortunate to have a doctor like him in this area. He has had excellent training and his needle skills are proof!

While I feel Dr. Criste's bedside manner seems to waiver, I believe his expertise and professionalism more than make up for it. I am a Nurse practitioner and Dr. Criste has been my INTERVENTIONAL Pain Management physician for almost two years. I must stress the importance of "INTERVENTIONAL"; he is able to prescribe pain medications, however his training and personal interests are in the procedure and injection aspects of pain management. His specialty is not in the management of chronic pain medications. It saddens me that disgruntled, uneducated patients tend to be the naysayers simply because they didn't get the answer they wanted (and many times, the narcotic medication). As patients, sometimes not getting what we think we want is the best thing for us. To the "What a Jerk!" poster: Is it possible that the procedure he suggested was less invasive than the one you were referred for, or maybe required by your insurance company before they would approve the procedure you thought you wanted? Assuming your family doctor is the one who referred you to Dr. Criste, with all due respect to primary care physicians, they are not highly trained in all aspects of medicine; that is why specialties exist. It's entirely possible the procedure your primary thought you needed wasn't right for your medical condition. I know from experience, some patients exaggerate and some medical professionals really are jerks. Dr. Criste is definitely NOT one of the jerks. Even if he was...would you rather seen a jerk who can make your pain go away or an incredibly nice doctor that gives you no pain relief?

Referred to Dr Criste for a specific procedure and upon consultation, he decided to try another procedure before doing the original procedure that I was referred to him for. After leaving the office, I had some questions and called to inquire about them. Spoke with his nurse first, who said she would talk to Dr Criste and get back with me. Instead I got a hateful and very unprofessional phone call from the doctor himself. Very rude and condescending, generic answers and nothing specific. He made it quite clear that I shouldn't be asking questions. He then ended the call by telling me I needed to call and cancel my scheduled procedure because I obviously wasn't ready. I truly believe this man did me a favor by telling me to cancel. Very rude and unprofessional!

Although his office door, his profile, his website, and probably the phonebook all state PAIN MANAGEMENT as his area of expertise, he claimed to not be interested in the subject. He said I was too young to be receiving pain meds without looking at my chart (I am 42) and told me in no uncertain terms that if he could not perform a procedure on me he was "not interested in that." I asked him whether he could give me joint injections and he grabbed a piece of paper, circled something and threw it to me, saying "I hope you have good luck with that." He also wear scrubs, for some reason. I hope he changes them before performing one of his procedures as I have the flu.

the guy was a jerk!

Dr Criste is probably the best doctor I've meet recently. Well trained(mayo clinic and northwestern university trained), he certainly know's what he is talking about and was very adept in the procedures that he does. I've seen quite a number of spine and pain specialist in the midwest for my low back pain but none we're as credentialed and nowhere as good as Dr. Criste in what he does. The back procedure was pain free and the only one that worked after so many I've done in other pain clinics. I would definitely recommend him to friends and family.

I am a 76 year old grandmom of 6 and had been suffering from severe back pain for the last 6 years before I came to Dr. Criste. I have seen a neurosurgeon who operated on my back, an orthopedist who also operated on me, and have been back and forth with my primary physician for the same problem. I had been using a cane eversince this back issue started. I was taking pain medications which I hated because it made me feel worse most of the time. Finally, my primary referred me to Dr. Criste for pain management. He was fairly new at that time at the Center for medical Arts and I had my doubts, but I went.At the reception, I met his 2 lovely nurses who were both very kind and courteous to me despite my being very grumpy to them ( I know this because my grandkids always tell me so, my only excuse is the pain I feel 24/7). After we finished the humdrum of registration and getting my vitals, I finally met Dr. Criste.Thought obviously very young compared to me, I was impressed with his voice of authority. He was soft-spoken but very direct, cordial and thorough at the same time. I trusted him immediately because somehow, he made me understand what my problem was about and he sounded certain that he could help me. So, he scheduled me for a minimally invasive procedure of nerve ablation the next day.After he explained to me again the procedure including its pros and cons, he then did his "miracle". In less than 2 days, I was at the mall, walking for the first time without my cane!!! I was so happy that I called and thanked Dr. Criste and Tery his nurse! I just never thought that I could still be helped!It's been 3 months since my procedure and I am still walking cane-free and pain-free! God bless doctors like Dr. Criste for making this next years of my life more enjoyable than it'll ever be!

I was referred to Gerson Criste for an evaluation for workers comp and I'm permanently disabled and receive SS Disability in Illinois.The referring Dr.said Gerson would help me and could handle my cronic knee pain.Dr Criste not only would not examine me,but told me that he was scared of the DEA and would not prescibe pain meds for anyone unless they were dieing of cancer,had an amputation,etc.He said he had NONE of my records(which he should have had being it a work comp issue).All he did was talk to me.His nurse had checked my tempature and bp.Gerson did no examination at all on me.NONE.All he did was talk and tell me he is scared of the DEA.Don't waste your time seeing this Dr.