Does anybody know if there is an alternative surgery other than fusion surgery?

Question

My husband has been suffering from a herniated disc for over a year. The Neuro Surgen said he has faith he would get better on its own in about five years or he has the opion to get fusion surgery but there was no gurantee he would be back to normal he would not be able to do heavy duty work. Does anybody know if there is an other surgery he can get that would get him back on his feet.

Answer 1

When you fuse an area of the spine you lose mobility in that particular region. The spine is very mobile and fusing vertebrae together causes extreme wear and tear on the vertebrae (and discs) above and below the area of the fusion because they are trying to compensate for the area that is now immobile. This can cause new herniated discs, bone spurs, foraminal narrowing and spinal stenosis. Fusions cannot be reversed, either, and some patients who have them may experience a lifetime of spine problems and surgeries.

Fusions are too often performed for people with Degenerative Disc Disease. The pain and symptoms of Degenerative Disc Disease all stem from nerve impingement.



LSI’s minimally invasive procedure, called a Percuteaneous Arthroscopic Discectomy, is a simple solution to relieve the pressure within the disc which, therefore, alleviates the pain. The patient walks out of our surgical center of their own accord 2 – 3 hours after the procedure and will not experience any of the negative disadvantages that conventional surgery entails.

Answer 2

I had several procedures done:

Steroid injections which worked only for a little while. By the time I needed another injection, I was exceeding the steroid level. So I had to stop that.

Then there was a procedure called IDET. Intra-Discal Electro Therapy. I had this done and knew going in that the success rate was minimal, but I might contemplate it before surgery. What it is is the insertion of a coil into the disk which then heats up and - in layman's terms - softens the inside of the disc. Then, when it cools off and rehardens, supposedly damaged spots are healed. It didn't work for me. It was very painful.

My disc problem is the L-5 disc. Ultimately I had a fusion surgery, which did not fuse properly. Ideally, after fusion surgery, when ever one bends, the fused vertebrae are to move parallel to each other as they are fused as one. Well, one side would open up and pinch nerves when ever I bent over. So I had to have another fusion surgery. Needless to say I have a lot of titanium in me. Two weeks after the second surgery, I was in a head on collision in a car wreck and of course I wasn't wearing a seat belt and went into the windshield, so I never know if the second surgery would have been successful. I still had pain and have had to start wearing a Fentanyl patch, which is synthetic morphine. This alleviates any and all pain.

Perhaps your doctor will prescribe this prior to having to do surgery. I have just heard too many people that weren't satisfied with back surgery. Of course there are some satisfied. But that's just the problem - its not 100%.

Good Luck.

Answer 3

Has your husband ever seen a chiropractor? Chiropractic is founded in the belief that the Central Nervous System (brain, spinal cord, and nerves) control every bodily function, and when the vertebrae are misaligned, they can pinch the nerves that run out between them. Herniated disks can also place pressure on the spinal nerves, causing pain that can begin in the back and radiate down the leg. Chiropractic treatments can help alleviate this pressure placed on nerves via safe, non-invasive spinal adjustments.

http://www.spineuniverse.com/treatment/alternative/ag_chiro_herndisk.html

There is also something called a DRX9000 machine, which is mainly used to relieve the pain/pressure caused by bulging disks by sucking or pulling the inner disk fluid back into the center. I used to work in a chiropractic office, and we had patients who swore by the machine. I'm not saying this is a guaranteed cure for your husband, but it is definitely something to consider before taking the serious step towards surgery.

http://healthsolutionssource.com/DRX9000Info.html

Take the time to find a good, recommended chiropractor in your area, preferably one with a DRX9000. Visit a few offices and choose the chiropractor you are most comfortable with. No matter what you decide to do, I wish you the best of luck!

Answer 4

Two of my patients have got spinal surgery in India.One was treated for spondylolistheis by spinal fusion and the other for disc replacement.Both of them are very happy with the results.Their pain and other symptoms due to nerve compression have totally gone.

Spinal Surgery is very cheap in India.There is one company that is very famous in India that arranges spine surgery for foreigners in India.They are called the Forerunners Healthcare.I read a lot about them in the Newspapers and about their patient stories.I have also read that they arrange financing for american and canadian patients as spine surgery is not covered by insurance.They also have photos pasted of their International patients.You can checkout their website.

The cost savings are incredible.As a doctor i personally believe that your spine surgery can be easily handled in India as the quality of healthcare available here is simply best in the world.The surgeons are USA/UK trained and facilities are 5 star.both my patients had gone to India through the forerunners healthcare company.i strongly recommend you to talk to this company,checkout your options with surgery from them.

http://www.forerunnershealthcare.com

The options available for your husband with grade 3 to grade 4 prostrusion-

1)Endoscopic Discectomy--best-your husband will be up and active in 2 days

2)Laser Spine surgery--again back to normal within a day

3)Open discectomy without fusion

4)Open discectomy with fusion--what you have been advised

5)Discectomy with artificial disc replacement---this could be of help--as fusion and disc replacement have same indications for the surgery.

best wishes

Answer 5

Have you tried Ceragem? Go to www.ceragem.com to see a picture of what I'm talking about. You did'nt say what state you live in but there may be a free ceragem center where you can try it. It's a massage bed with rollers and heat and it's helped me. It can help with a lot of health problems. My first few visits were painful but then I started feeling more relaxed and my disc pain is less and I'm sleeping better.

Answer 6

My name is Charles Heydon. I was diagnosed with degenerated discs in my lower back over ten years ago. After going through two years of physical therapy and being on disability. I was forced to go back into the same profession that caused my injury in the first place. Less than one year ago, my chiropractor started me on mangosteen juice. Now I am pain free and my acid reflux is gone to boot. I am now a distributor for this product and will not go anywhere without it. I have a web site that has information and testimonials about the anti-inflammatory properties in this juice. Go to www.jointjuice.biz.

Answer 7

My husband has a bad back and is constant pain also. Somehow or another he has learned to block out the pain as long as he doesn't over exert himself. If you are using an attorney to get disability you may be better off doing it your self. He has receives his disability and filled out all of paperwork and submitted all medical records that Social Security requested.

Answer 8

I work for a spine surgeon.. please go on our web site, there are alot of alternatives to surgery... and then find a minimally invasive spine surgeon in your area. www.sciatica.com Arizona Institute for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

Answer 9

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Answer 10

There is a new method that actually replaces the disc with some material whicht seems to last well.. might do well to do disc replacement search.