Back Pain Support Group

Use the infuse method, they put a sponge with cadaver ground bone on it. then a cage and screws. a fushion with bone graph can take a year to completely fuse. and you can not take any antinflamatories will your fushion takes you will wear a brace for a few months. and yes you will be in pain. everyone is different, but i can tell you from experience with lumbar fushion it is painful. and you have no guarantee it will take your pain away once it heals. If your fushion does not take they will have to do more surgery. and the risks are the same with any surgery as far as being under. but the good news is the neck heals fastest in the spine so your recovery should be shorter than mine was. I hope this helps you some, if you have any other questions feel free to ask.

I was going to ask you if they have recommended artificial discs for you, but if you have 3 that need to be repaired, I believe that in the States we are not approved to do 3 cervical yet, only two, but you might want to ask your Doctor about that option.

Koliover is right on the money. You can have cages placed and then some BMP, or cadaver bone or your own bone graft and see if that helps you fuse. The recovery is not easy, but what surgery is easy??! None! Every surgery has a potential of having complications, paralysis..... I don't think so, death? Like with any other surgery, the risk of dying is always there, but it is soooooo low, that is not even worth worrying about it.

The one thing that I would do if I was you, is get at least 2 different opinions from 2 Neurosurgeons. You need to write down all of your questions, concerns, etc, on a piece of paper and when you go to your appointment bring someone with you, so they will remember the answers to the questions that you are asking. We are so nervous right before surgery that we tend to forget what the Doc tells us. Make sure to research your surgery and learn about your condition as much as possible, become an expert. Just Google away and you will learn what to ask, what todo and not to do, etc.... Good luck to you and keep us posted.

No I am not a candidate for an artificial disc due to the massive degeneration and multiple levels needed.
If the idea is pain removal and there are no guarantees, plus from what I've read here most are in horrific pain afterwards, and need multiple surgeries, what is the point of the procedure other than barbarity?

well if your degeneration is real bad, you don't want fragments to break off cause then you are at risk of paralysis. You are right though there is no guarantee that the fushions will take or if they do that you will be pain free, you may however have absolutely wonderful results and wonder why you waited, It all boils down to how horrific your pain is and when you have tried everything possible and the only option left is surgery. I waited 17 yrs for my first one, maybe i should not have but i was soooo anti back surgery until i got to where i just could not bear it anymore. I did fuse, but still have soooo much pain, but keep in mind i have mutiple issues with my spine and nerve damage so all these other conditions are painful too and i did not have anymore surgeries to "fix" the other issues. I did just recently have my spinal cord stimulator put in for all the nerve pain. and it is the most relief i have ever had. Don't give up and if you are not sure about surgery then research, research and research some more. If you have doubts then wait it is not like you can't have it later on. It is your choice and only you can make it. do what you think is best for you. I sure hope you find relief in whatever you decide. good luck

Another thing............. remember that most people that are in this forum and forums similar to this one are here for support because they either are awaiting the decision to have surgery, need information on their condition and then you have the ones that are not candidates for surgery and keep on coming here for support.

The people that had succesful fusions do not come here, they move along. They go back to work and to live full succesful lives and don't need to come here anymore. There are a lot of people that have had succesful surgical fusions, you are just not going to see them here, they are back living normal lives......
So, is not barbaric and koilover makes a really good point when she talks about fragments breaking up and maybe you ending up paralyze. Surgery is a very personal decision and if I was you I would get at least get 3 Neurosurgeons opinions, I will check their credentials very carefully, talk to some of his patients in the waiting room and ask about outcomes, etc. there is no reason to say NO right away, just do your homework and see what kind of decision you come up with. Good luck to you

My husband had the artificail disks and cadaver bone surgery w/the cage, for the most part his surgery was successful, he still has lingering nerve like "pain" down his left arm and his fingers on his left hand feel like they have pins and needles in them, if he touches something w/only his fingertips it feels like he's hit his "funny bone". He had this done at least 8-10 yrs ago. I have 2 herniated disks in the same spot, C4/5 and C 6/7, for the most part I take ibuprofen & hot/cold compresses, I don't want surgery if at all possible. Working 10 hrs a day in a dentist office all bent over isn't helping any. Good luck. I hope and wish you the best.

Well, the issue here is that I am a poor candidate for fusion due to lack of bone making as is (osteopina). The doctors also can't seem to agree. For example one doctor said if I'm hit from the rear in an accident I could be paralized. Another one said the chances of that are only slightly greater than normal. One doctor said you need this surgery right now, the other said no you don't. I can't even get two similar opinions. I've been to four doctors and have had absolutely no agreement. Kind of hard to make any decisions. No one has said that a disc could break off and paralize me. This is the first I'm hearing of that.

Usually people with Osteopenia get BMP put in the cage's during the fusion process to help promote bone growth, that's what BMP does. Since BMP induces the formation of bone and cartilage people like you with Osteopenia can get a succesful fusion when the BMP is used.
As far as the car accident scenario..... we can all have a car accident and someone that hits us from behind and we can stay paralized, or even died, so I think that the car accident scenario that the one Doc is giving you is just so far fetched.
I don't know............ Is like me after 4 spinal surgeries if I get into a car accident I could end up paraplegic, but I never thought of that as part of my decision making process....

Well mine either actually re the car thing. I just don't know...this is all so frustrating. Each doctor has a different opinion and if I can't even get two cohesive agreed diagnosis's how am I to know what on earth to do...eeesh...SIGH

i had the cadaver bone and cage personally and my fushion took. also your healing time is a bit better and you do not have the extra pain of bone graph being taken from your pelvis. as far as my fushion surgery goes it was a success cause it took. but i did not get any pain relief, but as i mentioned before i do have multiple issues too. One more thing i wanted to let you know when i did have my surgery i went on line and paid 25 dollars to do a back ground check on my surgeon just to make sure i was in good hands. You can find out about any complaints, malpractice suits that kind of thing. Aslo you can find out all the certifications and where they went to school etc. Mine was one of 3 in my area certified to do the "in-fuse" so i would reccommend to anyone having surgery to do this. You are your own advocate so keep yourself safe.