Disc Back Surgery - Types Of Surgery And Alternatives

Surgery For A Herniated Disc can be a very scary thing to consider, especially because of all the conflicting information available. There are definitely some times where disc back surgery is required, but many times, this is not the case.

In fact, much of the research available today tells us that the success rate of disc back surgery is not very good, and rarely results in lasting relief (in most cases, the pain comes back within 5 years).

This article will discuss the different options available for disc back surgery, but before we discuss that, we need to talk about what a herniated disc is.

The discs of the spine are cushions that separate each set of vertebrae in the back. Their main function is to act as shock-absorbers, protecting the bones of the spine from excessive wear and tear with motion.

Each disc is composed of a strong outer covering called the annulus, and a soft jelly center called the nucleus. In the case of a herniated disc, the annulus becomes weak and tears. This causes the jelly to shift from the center of the disc into the area of weakness, which causes the disc to bulge.

The most serious complication of this problem is that the nerves of the spine are located directly behind each spinal disc, which is where the disc will tend to bulge if it is injured. Because of this, the herniated disc will tend to apply pressure on a nerve, which can cause a great deal of pain and disability.

In fact, an interesting fact about the discs of the spine that you may not be aware of is that they are not able to experience pain sensations. This may sound crazy to you at first, because as you know, this can be a very painful problem to deal with.

But if you think about it, it makes sense that a disc wouldn’t experience pain, because they are absorbing shock all the time. If they could experience pain, you would be hurting all the time, with every movement you make!

So, what actually causes the pain in the case of a herniated disc? It’s actually the pressure on the affected nerve. Even more significant than the pain, though, is the other body parts that can be affected by this problem.

Because the nerves of the spine control everything in the body, pressure on a nerve will cause the body part being controlled by that nerve to stop functioning like it’s supposed to.

A good example of this would be a herniated disc in the lower back. The nerves that would be affected here control the legs, so it’s very common for a person with this health problem to experience pain traveling down the legs, as well as weakness in the legs.

I’ve even seen cases where the pressure on the nerves in the low back becomes so intense that a person literally drops to their knees because they’ve lost so much strength in their legs.

Now, before we talk about the different types of herniated disc spine surgery available, let me just say one thing, because people often ask if there is a way for them to know if surgery is their only option, and there is.

There are only a couple of situations that actually call for surgery right away. The first is if you have a herniated disc in your low back, and you are losing control of your bowel and/or bladder. This is very serious and usually requires surgery right away.

The other circumstance that usually requires surgery is when a person begins to experience weakness in the extremities (either the arms or legs). This is a sign that the nerves have so much pressure on them that they are starting to fall asleep. This is also a very serious sign.

One thing I should say about that second circumstance, though, is that the weakness I’m referring to is an objective weakness that a physician can only find through a proper examination. You may feel like you are having weakness, but unless it shows up on the exam, it may not be serious enough to consider surgery.

In other words, your physician is the only one who will know if you have a true weakness that requires surgery.

Now let’s talk about the different types of disc back surgery commonly used today. Even though there is a lot of new research in this field, the two most commonly used types of surgery involve either removing the bulging part of the disc to remove the pressure from the nerve, or removing the entire disc and fusing the vertebrae above and below the disc together.

With both of these types of surgery, the success rate is very low – only about 16% according to the medical journal Spine. Also, these often result in other complications in the future. With a fusion, the joints above and below the fusion have to work extra hard to make up for the loss of motion, so those joints tend to wear out more quickly, and the problem will eventually spread throughout the back.

In the case of a disc resection, where they remove the part of the disc that is bulging, the problem usually comes back within 5 years, because if you are removing a part of the disc, it creates a weakness in the disc, and also causes scar tissue to develop over time.

Many people ask me about disc replacement back surgery, and other recent discoveries in this field, but at this moment in time, these types of surgery are not as commonly used. I believe there is a lot of potential in this field, but they really haven’t perfected this technology yet.

So, here’s the bottom line with disc back surgery – always view this as a last resort. The success rate is not very good, and unless you fit into one of the categories that absolutely requires surgery, you should try everything else available first.

So, what other alternatives do you have? After working with thousands of patients with this problem, I have actually found that there are a number of treatments that are very helpful, and can truly provide lasting results.

I’ve actually found that it’s a combination of treatments that provide the best results. If you are interested in avoiding disc back surgery, and would like to know more about the combination of treatments that are most effective for healing a herniated disc, you can click here (bulging disc surgery) to get all the details.

Did you find this article helpful? Here are some other related articles and resources you may also find useful:

• Here is a list of the best resources I've found for Bulging Disc / Herniated Disc relief
• Herniated Disc Back Surgery – Surgical Options And Alternatives
• Herniated Disc Spine Surgery – When To Choose Surgery, and When To Choose Other Options
• Herniated Disc Surgery - Things To Consider Before Making A Decision
• More Disc Surgery Resources