Bal Rajagopalan, MD

There are a lot of reviews out there that give stars based on how crowded a doctors office is or if the front desk staff and nurses have good attitudes. This is not one of those reviews. This one is majorly based on his performance as a doctor/​orthopedic surgeon.
Dr Raj gave me new knees, at least that’s what it feels like. I came into his office based off a recommendation from a good friend of mine who had seen Dr. Raj in the past. After an MRI I was quickly diagnosed with a double meniscus tear in both my knees that I was hesitating getting checked out for about a year or so.
After the MRI and the diagnosis Dr. Raj moved quickly and effectively, setting up a time and place in a friendly surgery center near by and fixed my knees. He made me feel real comfortable and confident, and everything he mentioned about what to expect was spot on.
I had arthroscopic surgery on both my knees at the same time and ended up walking out of the surgery center a couple hours after my surgery. Granted I was on Norcos and anesthesia, but I walked out.
I took orders and iced my knees 3 times a day for a couple weeks, then gradually reduced it to once a day which I actually am starting to enjoy now.
Also started physical therapy almost immediately after and was so surprised that the pain level was so low.
Stopped taking pain killers a few days in and pain was minimal. Icing and taking it day by day is key. Don’t over do it and listening to your body is super important.
It’s been 2 months since my surgery and I feel great. Started running recently again and can’t wait to start playing basketball and soccer in the upcoming months.
My point is that Dr. Raj is smart, confident, effective, and forward. He won’t recommend something you don’t need.
Staff — 5 Stars
Offices — 5 Stars
Dr. Raj — 5 Stars
Outpatient Surgery Center — 5 Stars

I almost lost my lower leg three years ago due to a freak accident of a window breaking and falling on top of me. Dr Raj has helped me tremendously!!! Not only did he take care of me through the three different surgeries I had to have, he mentally got me through everything, by helping keep me positive. I’ve worked in medical offices most of my life, and have never seen a bedside manner like his. Dr. Raj goes above and beyond to meet your needs. He really is, the absolute best!

I have been seeing dr. Raj for three years now he has repaired my right and my left knee is definitely my favorite doctor I’ve ever been was because he truly cares about his patients everybody complains about how long they have to wait to see him but you have to understand he cares about his patients and wants to make sure they’re well taken care of so sometimes you have to be patient and wait that is the key people you have to wait because you’re going to get the best doctor and treatment that you’ve ever had first time I met him I knew he was the right doctor for me I highly recommend dr. Raj if I could give him more than five stars I would give him 10 Stars his kindness and concern really impressed me

I’m giving 1 star because Dr. Raj’s staff is great and Dr. Raj himself is also a very friendly guy with a good bedside manner and who speaks confidently. The front desk staff is friendly and everything was always handled in a polite, accommodating fashion. Unfortunately, in my case, Dr. Raj just wasn’t a very good doctor or surgeon. He was careless and not detail-​oriented enough in his work with me. Perhaps he’s overloaded with the number of patients he has had or all of his TV appearances, but ultimately, being a good doctor is supposed to be his job. However, every patient should get second and third opinions. So I blame myself partially for getting the second opinion too late.
Dr. Raj misdiagnosed me and performed an unnecessary operation to «align my kneecap» after I came to him with complaints about instability and what felt like my «knee popped out» several times… 13 times to be exact. He ordered me to get MRI images of the knee and told me there was nothing serious and that he’d just need to perform surgery to align the kneecap. So he performed my surgery and, afterwards, told me that I had a tear in my meniscus and that my knee should be fine now after some physical therapy. However, after obtaining all of the medical records, I found out that he just cut my meniscus and pretty much did nothing else. His surgery notes stated that all my ligaments were intact and pretty much I was fine. I’m not sure why he said my meniscus was torn and that he left it alone even though later images showed that he cut it off, but the way he handled that is not a big deal so water under the bridge on the meniscus.
So I went to get a second opinion since I still felt the same knee instability as before and was still tripping and falling with some pain just like I had before my surgery. Within 5 minutes of meeting this new doctor and after 10 seconds of him reading my MRI images and the reports the radiologists wrote (all radiologists write reports with their images, FYI), he asked me what Dr. Raj did for my ACL tear. I was shocked at his question and my response was, «What ACL tear? Dr. Raj never mentioned an ACL tear.» Well, it turns out I had a very typical, but chronic case of an ACL tear in the knee. The answer to my knee instability! One could say that Dr. Raj made a simple mistake, BUT Dr. Raj missed it in the first MRI images I took, missed it when he cut my knee open to look at it during surgery AND then also missed it again in the second MRI images I took, in addition to the report that the radiologist wrote from the second MRI images stating that my ACL was torn. Missing it once, sure, I can shrug that off to a simple mistake, but cutting me open during surgery and looking straight at it, not reviewing the images again before the surgery AND missing it completely in the second set of MRI images and report? That’s just careless. This wasn’t a small tear too. I could even see it on the images myself and I’m no doctor.
I hate judging people this way, but if you look at Dr. Raj’s credentials, he didn’t graduate from the best schools, didn’t have the best fellowships, didn’t do any significant research (at least I couldn’t find any), and didn’t have any notable fellowships, internships or residencies. I try not to judge based on education alone, as that’s not always the best indicator for a good doctor, but I should’ve at least gotten a second opinion. So my mistake on that part. Hindsight is 20/​20, right?
My new doctor has performed on professional athletes, has had fellowships with the orthopedic group that treats the Los Angeles Lakers, graduated from an ivy league medical school AND did surgery/​residency at an ivy league. He also repaired my ACL tear using a hamstring graft and showed me all the images before and after, as well as what he found during the operation (some arthritis starting to develop). So now, I’m fine, but I wasted a year and money from doing an unnecessary surgery with Dr. Raj, going through painful physical therapy and missing work. I’m just thanking my stars that I didn’t get further complications or problems from the surgery Dr. Raj did, other than this nasty 3 inch scar on my knee.
So the takeaway is, If you have a blatantly obvious issue, where all the symptoms, even without images (x-​rays, MRIs, etc.) point to one easily identifiable cause, then I don’t think being treated by Dr. Raj would be a bad idea (or any orthopedist, really). However, if you have a ligament tear, meniscus tear, cartilage damage, etc. or a cause that’s not as easily identifiable and the symptoms can point to multiple causes, then I would not go to Dr. Raj OR I’d go to Dr. Raj and go to another doc to get another opinion. Don’t roll the dice when it comes to your health.

Dr. Raj performed a hip surgery on my wife after it was all screwed up by another surgeon at Cedars.
His work was phenomenal as she has gotten much better. His bedside manners are second to none and he’s very friendly. I would recommend him to any friends or other family member with high regards.

Dr. Raj is a great doctor! He is an amazing surgeon and has a wonderful bedside manner. For all of you who need an orthopedic surgeon who specializes in sports medicine, you have found the right person!

Dr. Raj has been tremendous help in alleviating my severe tendinitis problem on my right elbow. The treatment given has helped me to get back into my routine golfing and daily work responsibilities. Thank you Dr. Raj for taking such good care of my problem with right elbow. No wonder you are one of the best Orthopedic Surgeon. You do have excellent staff. All the best.

To start, I’ve had several docs look at my back over the years but always chalked it up to simple lower back pain and to just rest and take pain meds and sent me home for a couple weeks. That’s gone on for over ten years. I left work do to extreme sciatica pain that didn’t allow me use of my right leg. Went to Dr. Baj aka Dr. Raj and I was seen right away, his staff was nice and pleasant and actually listened to me and didn’t assume anything other than what I was saying was going on. Dr. Raj was a good listener, he immediately expedited my x-​ray and mri and pain management within two days. I had vip treatment everywhere I went and there was absolutely no waiting. When he says he’s calling his friends /​colleagues he means it. I was treated great! Ultimately they found fragratments pressing on my spine and sciatic nerve. I was referred to Dr. Kasimian which had amazing reviews and I know why. He was kind and made me feel at ease especially with such a serious surgery. I had full trust and no doubt. I was then sent to Pearl Recovery in Beverly Hills for my recovery. I am the guy who doesn’t see the doctors unless through and emergency room of fear of poor treatment and both Dr. Raj and Dr. Kasimian and their staff has made this experience something to remember and I am truly truly appreciative of them all. Dr. Rajs staff went above and beyond their duties responding to my early and late night texts while I was in extreme pain and made the necessary arrangements by the time I was awake the next morning. Thank you guy’s and God bless you all.

This is the second time I went to Dr Raj for an orthopedic issue and I was very satisfied with both courses of treatment. First, I had a shoulder impingement. Dr Raj is very confident in what he does that once he told me that it was due to a muscle imbalance, my mind felt a lot more at ease. He prescribed a topical cream and told me to apply it for 3 – 5 days until the pain dissipates. To my happiness, the pain completely went away.
My last visit was for a painful knee. As a very active person, I thought I tore something. Dr Raj ordered an MRI and X-​ray and both came back with ligaments in tack. This was excellent news. He told me again that he isn’t concerned and that I should do some strengthening exercises for my legs that target the specific muscles that are weaker than the other leg muscles.
He has a very conservative approach. Dr Raj is very confident. He is by far one of the smartest physicians I have ever met. I highly recommend him and his overall practice. Management runs a very tight ship there and I was able to book my appointments within 24 hours, despite his busy schedule. They really care there and that goes a very long way!

Dr Raj is the best orthopedic surgeon! He literally saved my partner’s life with his stem cell procedure. It has now been 4 weeks and my partner has been able to hike 1,000 feet up a canyon when he couldn’t walk two blocks previously without pain. He also lost 11 lbs right after the surgery. I highly recommend Dr Raj. He is a miracle worker!

I wouldn’t trust any other orthopedic surgeon with my elderly fathers care! He was genuinely concerned and extremely caring as he calmed my dad’s fears !!! I am fortunate to be able to hire the best Dr in the a World !!! I know I did when I had Dr Raj take the case.

I have had difficulties with my knees every since my youth and have had several procedures done over the years.
My first experience with Dr Raj was 2 years ago and was very pleased with the outcome. Five weeks ago Dr Raj performed a total knee replacement.
After the third week I moved from my walker to a cane and now I no longer use my cane.
The most important issue Dr Raj stressed to me was therapy which I have done very thing they told me to do.
Dr Raj is a brilliant surgeon and I would highly recommend him to anyone in need of surgery… but be prepared to follow his directions.
Michael S

I went to see him because I was referred to him by my attorney for a rib fracture. And he highly recommended him since he was «board certified». I was thinking I’d be seeing a highly skilled doctor at a nice doctor’s office in Beverly Hills. Boy was I WRONG!
I went to the office for a walk in which I still had to schedule (???). This place was like a mill. People were sitting outside in the hallway and no where to sit inside the waiting room. There were kids crying and playing on the floor. Everyone was complaining about how long they had to wait. To be fair, they were to see different doctors, but I heard people talking about how they were waiting for Dr. Raj, same as me.
The people at the front are completely rude and they really don’t give a crap about you. But still I haven’t seen the doctor, I waited one and half hour to see him for 2 minutes. I told him about rib fracture and my injuries while he checked his phone and texting or emailing. Didn’t even seem like he was even paying attention. So I saw him for approximately 2– 4 minutes and a minute or two of was more waiting while he stepped out of the examining room. He didn’t say any diagnosis or what was going to happen, or anything. He just said to go see the receptionist/​front desk.
I go to the front desk and they tell me to sit down and wait again. I wait again, and they tell me I should schedule an appointment for a month out to see him. I asked, why am I seeing him again, because he didn’t say anything. She says she doesn’t know. And to make matters worse, she had the wrong chart in front of her and she says she doesn’t know where my chart is so I should sit down again until she calls me. So I wait again and scheduled my appointment month out. I asked if I should go see a physical therapist and she said someone should call me. BTW, it’s been a month and no one has called me since. (but I switched doctors and have been getting treated)
But I still do get calls from bitchy (excuse my language but this is the only way to describe them) ladies harrassing me to finish «medical history» over the phone so they can prepare a report. I keep asking what report can they possibly write when the doctor hasn’t even diagnosed or seen my xrays or said anything to me. So I get calls over and over again and they are completely rude and they said I HAVE to do this medical history interview over the phone that will take over 20 – 30 minutes. I tell them I’m at work and they should call at my convenience. But they said we have no control over when the interviewer is going to call. And that my attorney is the one asking for the report. I talked to my attorney and they have no idea what they are talking about. And they said since he didn’t diagnose and saw me for couple minutes, they don’t want the report from them.
Bottom line, I had an awful experience. How can you harrass your «patients» like that. And most of the people who go to this doctor’s office are people with major injuries. This place looks like a MILL for worker’s comp and lawsuits. Not a place where they care to treat you for your injuries and heal you. I feel no compassion from them.
I’d give them ZERO star!