While the condition sounds serious—and often causes pain, numbness, or weakness—surgery isn’t always the answer. Sometimes referred to as a bulging, slipped, ruptured, or protruding disc, every year more than three million Americans suffer with a herniated disc. But the question remains: does everyone with a herniated disc need surgery? Let’s explore the options.
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Back Pain After Surgery? Here’s What To Know
We live in a world of instant gratification. After going through back surgery, most patients expect their back pain to disappear after surgery. They may think they will wake up, and the pain will be gone. In a lot of cases, some back pain is normal in the first 72 hours post-surgery, so don’t panic. Let us describe what is normal and what is not.
How to Find Sacroiliac (SI) Joint Pain Relief
How many times have you said this out loud or thought about it? It might have been pain from your sacroiliac joint in your lower back. If so, keep reading to discover how to find sacroiliac (SI) joint pain relief.
Understanding the Difference Between Spinal Stenosis & Sciatica
Let’s start with a quiz.
Question 1: Do your symptoms go down one leg or both?
Question 2: How far down do the symptoms go?
Question 3: Do you feel better when you sit or stand?
Question 4: Does walking bring on your symptoms?
How you answered these questions will initially indicate whether you could have spinal stenosis or sciatica and will help with understanding the difference between spinal stenosis and sciatica.
How Long Is the Recovery for a Spinal Fusion?
Spinal fusion surgery is performed to stabilize the spine. It is major surgery with general anesthesia. It reinforces the back by linking two vertebrae together. Many times it is a last resort after other treatments have been tried and failed at providing relief. Let’s learn more about why you might need this surgery, and how long is the recovery for a spinal fusion? Continue reading
What Are the Benefits of Artificial Disc Replacement?
Is pain affecting your quality of life? If that pain is in either your neck area or the lumbar area of your spine, there are surgical methods to correct these painful conditions by replacing damaged spinal discs with artificial or manufactured discs. The procedure is minimally invasive and involves a short hospital stay. What are the benefits of artificial disc replacement?
Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery: How Does It Work?
If you have a condition like spinal instability, bone spurs, a herniated disc, scoliosis, or spinal tumors, or many other spinal issues, you may need spinal surgery. If that sounds frightening, you would not be alone. Any kind of spine surgery is worrisome, but the best case is through minimally invasive procedures. Let’s learn more about minimally invasive spine surgery and how it works.
What Are Signs of a Slipped Disk?
What are the signs of a slipped disk? They are exactly the same as a herniated disk, bulging disk, or a ruptured disk, since they are all generally the same. The terms are interchangeable. It mostly occurs in the lumbar region or lower part of your back and spine, although it can also happen in the neck area. We will continue to use the term “slipped” throughout and help you understand how to recognize a slipped disk, what can cause it, and what to do about it.
When to Consider an Artificial Disk Replacement
Chronic back pain seems to be an epidemic in the US. We all know someone who suffers from it, or maybe we do. Our spine allows us to move freely and without pain as long as the structures are not damaged. The disks between our vertebrae are a prime example. They are the cushions that keep our vertebra from touching each other and causing that pain. Unfortunately those disks can become unhealthy due to age or damage from an accident, but fortunately patients with back pain can have a disk replaced with a metal or plastic one. When should you consider an artificial disk replacement?
What Does It Mean to “Throw Your Back Out”?
It can happen in the most innocuous ways like bending down to tie your shoes. You are suddenly in extreme pain, you can barely stand up straight, and getting into a car is a non-starter. You probably have your own story about throwing your back out, and you remember it well. So exactly what does it mean to “throw your back out”?