Cervical Spine Surgery

Concerning the Cervical Spine:

The cervical section of your spine consists of seven vertebras and runs from your upper back up through your neck. Along with the seven vertebras are eight pairs of spinal nerves exiting the foramen labeled C1 through C8. The most common problems to plague the cervical spine are cervical stenosis and disc problems such as a bulging or herniated disc.

Concerning Cervical Spine Surgery:

When considering treatment for conditions developed in the cervical spine conservative methods are often attempted before surgery. They may consist of rest, medicines and physical therapy combined with exercises. After three to six months if the patient is showing no signs of improvement or the condition is degrading, your doctor may advise you that cervical spine surgery is an option.

How Does Cervical Spine Surgery Help:

Cervical spine surgery is performed to help alleviate painful symptoms caused by the compression of spinal nerves and/or the spinal cord. Depending on the surgery being performed, a cervical spinal fusion may be needed to add stability to that area of the spine. When a herniated disc is removed from the spine, it is common to need a cervical fusion to stabilize the spine. Fusion surgery fuses two vertebrae together to create a bracing effect for the spine providing stability that the extracted disc was providing.

Spinal conditions that may be treat through cervical spine surgery:

-Degenerative disc disease

-Pinched nerve

-Traumatic spine injuries

-Disc damage (herniated or bulging)

-Arthritis of the spine

Risks associated with cervical spine surgery:

Cervical spine surgery has its share of risks and complications just like most other forms of major surgery.

Some of the possible risks when undergoing cervical spine surgery are:

-Injury to the spinal cord

-Damage to nerves

-Injury to the esophagus

-Injury to the vocal cords

-Carotid artery injury

-Bone fusion rejection

-Infection or loss of blood

In very extreme cases complications can be as severe as paralysis or even death. You doctor will go over in detail with you the risks and complications involved before your cervical spine surgery.

Concerning spine revision surgery:

When there is a spinal deformity present in a patient from a previous surgery, revision surgery may be performed to correct the problem. Depending on the circumstances the surgery may require operating from both the front and back side of the neck to correct it.

Because surgery has already been performed in this area there is a higher risk of complications to occur during revision surgery. A spine revision procedure is much more complicated than the original surgery making it more difficult for the surgeon to relieve the patients pain and restore proper nerve function. Revision surgery will also increase your chances of developing long term chronic neck pain.