By Dr. B. Andrew Castro
Orthopedic Spinal Surgery
Staring down at a cell phone or hunching over a computer all day are not just bad habits, they’re top contributors to chronic neck and nerve pain.
The result of stress, poor posture, increased screen time and other factors, cervical disc pain may begin in the neck but can quickly radiate across the shoulders and down the arms. The discs between your vertebrae — the structures that absorb all of that shock, strain and pain — often cause the problem.
As one of the biggest breakthroughs in spinal medicine of the last decade, cervical disc replacement is an increasingly attractive option for those looking for an alternative to traditional surgical remedies.
What is cervical disc replacement surgery?
Cervical disc replacement surgery incorporates several techniques and advancements to generate better outcomes and shorter recovery times for patients suffering from inflamed or ruptured discs.
At its core is a precisely engineered artificial disc that provides nearly the same range of motion as the natural spinal disc, maintaining flexion, extension, side bending and rotation.
What happens during cervical disc replacement surgery?
Requiring just a small incision in the neck, the damaged disc is cleared out and replaced with an artificial disc, which is inserted between two healthy vertebrae. This new disc relieves the pressure on the spinal cord without requiring the adjacent vertebrae to be immobilized.
Most cervical disc replacements are done as an outpatient procedure. There’s very little downside, very little blood loss, and you can usually be home the same day.
What goals can you expect to achieve?
Cervical disc replacement is a safe and effective way to relieve the pressure on your nerves and allow them to heal. The procedure is designed to alleviate neck and arm pain without diminishing much of the range of motion in your neck before the surgery.
Additionally, since this surgery aims to decompress the spinal nerves, it can also improve balance, coordination and strength in the upper and lower extremities.
What are the most common alternatives to cervical disc replacement?
Prior to the advent of cervical disc replacement, the preferred method for treating cervical disc pain was spinal fusion, which requires more involved surgery to remove the entire disc and insert bone or similar material between the vertebrae below and above. These vertebrae are then anchored to one another via plates or rods.
Another procedure to alleviate pressure on the spine is decompression, which is a less-invasive procedure than fusion, removing damaged or misaligned portions of vertebrae through a small incision to alleviate pressure.
What are the benefits of cervical disc replacement over fusion or decompression?
While these procedures are safe and effective in relieving the pain, they do immobilize the spine and change the way the neck moves. Patients may have diminished range of motion with regards to head turning and looking up or down.
As an alternative to fusion, cervical disc replacement offers faster recovery time and superior range of motion.
Compared to decompression, cervical disc replacement offers similar recovery times but has far greater long-term benefits for range of motion. No collar is needed after surgery. That said, decompression and fusion are more suitable for those whose spinal pain stems from multiple levels or misaligned vertebrae requiring a reconstructive procedure.
Who can benefit from cervical disc replacement?
Those suffering from chronic neck and nerve pain might be considered candidates for the surgery, as it can greatly relieve stress to the nerves caused by damaged discs. Ideally, the patient will be in relatively good health, with pain stemming from a rupture of a healthy disc, rather than deteriorating discs.
There are certain conditions in the neck — trauma, tumors, spinal cord compression — that would make a disc replacement less ideal for that patient, but for those who fit the bill, this cutting-edge procedure can give people suffering chronic neck pain a new lease on life.
Dr. B. Andrew Castro is a board-certified, fellowship-trained spine surgeon at Beaufort Memorial. He is the only surgeon in the county that currently offers cervical disc replacement surgery.