The motion of different parts of your body or your body as a whole is controlled and enabled by various systems in the body, especially your spine. Its flexibility and presence of complex nervous systems and the skeletal structure around it make it prone to multiple issues requiring specialized attention. Physical therapy and other non-invasive procedures have successfully dealt with these problems. However, some serious cases may only prove responsive to spine surgery East Brunswick. Spine surgery involves complex operations and consideration before attempting, which are further highlighted below.

What is Spine Surgery?

This involves complex operations to restore function or ease symptoms of the spine and associated structures. The type of operation done by your surgeon depends on your problem, its urgency, and the desired results. Some of the most typical spinal operations include:

Laminectomy

This operation is usually done to deal with lumbar spinal stenosis. The surgeon doing the operation eliminates fractions of bone, ligaments, or bone spurs from your back. This is crucial in reducing pressure on the spinal nerves to help alleviate weakness or pain. The operation can also possibly make your spine have decreased stability. If this occurs, your physician may require another procedure like spinal fusion. These procedures can, on occasion, be done together.

Spinal fusion

This procedure is necessary for spinal pain that is chronic, undefined, and includes degenerative changes. The physician joins some spinal bones of your vertebrae to each other. This decreases the movement between them while limiting how far your nerves can be stretched without affecting your range of activity.

 Complications like bones not fusing entirely together can occur but rarely, with lifestyle factors like smoking increasing the chance of infection. This may bring the need for another operation.

Disk replacement

This involves your surgeon removing injured spinal disks and replacing them with a prosthetic one between your vertebrae. This procedure can enable you to still have motion in your spine, unlike spinal fusion, with significantly less downtime. There is always a risk that the disk can fall from its place, needing it to be fixed again.

Foraminotomy

This operation can alleviate pain when a nerve in your spine is pressed. The bones surrounding it are cut around to increase the space, easing your pain by reducing the pressure on the nerves. Due to the instability caused by the operation, fusion may also be done.

Benefits

This surgery is crucial to improving your health and quality of life as:

  •         You become more physically fit
  •         You can move around better
  •         You no longer need pain medications
  •         You improve your mood
  •         You increase productivity at work
  •         You could resume work if it stopped you from going

Despite the advantages of this operation, some risk factors can cause rare complications like:

  •         Bleeding
  •         Reaction to drugs or anesthesia
  •         Blood clots in your lungs or legs
  •         Infection
  •         Stroke
  •         Heart attack
  •         Nerve damage
  •         Herniated disk

Operations involving your spine can be complex and need qualified professionals due to the risk of not walking again. For inquiries into spine surgery, check our website, or call our East Brunswick, NJ offices.