Celling Treatment Centers

BACK PAIN: Laser Spine Surgery vs. Spinal Fusion

Today, patients have many choices for the treatment of back pain. These options range from simple conservative measures such as rest and modification of activities known to exacerbate back pain to very invasive procedures such as spinal fusion.

Most patients seek out the less aggressive treatments as first options for obvious reasons. Whether it is chiropractic, physical therapy or pain injections, numerous patients are successfully treated in the United States every year.

Patients without a satisfactory response to one of these treatment methods frequently seek out other care and most patients approach the decision on what additional care to seek out based upon several factors - how invasive is it, what are the risks, what are the complications, how much time from away from work is expected, what is the cost, and what can be done if it doesn't work?

Frequently, patients face this difficult decision when they have failed to respond to physical therapy or chiropractic. It is at this point that many patients are referred to an orthopedic spine surgeon or a neurosurgeon for a consultation and many times receive the difficult news that they need a spine fusion.

What is a spinal fusion? 

A spinal fusion is a surgical procedure wherein the surgeon attempts to fuse the vertebra in the spine together in order to decrease pain by removing the source of pain. This is done by placing bone between the two vertebrae and then connecting them together using metal screws and rods.

The use of spine fusion for the treatment of back pain has steadily increased over the last 15 years. There are many conditions of the spine that clearly benefit from spine fusion, most notably - spinal deformity such as scoliosis, trauma resulting in fractures of the spine, instability of the spine such as spondylolisthesis, and spine infections and tumors where large sections of the spine must be removed in order to remove the tumor - but spine fusion for chronic low back pain (CLBP) continues to remain controversial.

In the 80s and 90s, many surgeons would not perform spinal fusions for back pain alone because of inconsistent outcomes and the significant potential risks and complications associated with spinal fusion. This changed in the mid-90s. Between 1996 and 2001, the number of spinal fusions increased 77%. By comparison hip replacement surgery only increased 13-14%.  

Today, spine fusion for chronic low back pain is a common procedure. One of the most significant risks occurs when the spinal discs either above or below the fusion wear out and become extremely painful. This well known phenomenon is termed, Adjacent Segment Disease (ASD) and requires re-fusion of the spine to include the newly effected areas. The incidence of ASD can be as high as 40%.

However, spine fusion remains a very popular surgery despite the significant risks and numerous failures to improve or even worsening of symptoms. Now, many insurance companies are recommending a second opinion before spinal fusion with insurance companies denying spinal fusion operations for degenerative disc disease due to poor outcomes.

For patients trying to simply find an answer for their back pain problem, making the decision to have a spine fusion and finding the right surgeon can be a daunting task.

Are there other options for my back pain? 

At Celling Treatment Centers, we believe that it is reasonable try other options before a spinal fusion for chronic low back pain. Our focus is on helping those patients who have failed physical therapy but are not ready for a spine fusion.

We specialize in minimally invasive and non-invasive alternatives to spine fusion for chronic low back pain and believe a more biologic and less invasive approach is rational before selecting a spinal fusion.

Endoscopic laser spine surgery for treatment of chronic back pain, spinal stenosis herniated discs, bulging discs and sciatica relief.

Serving patients from all over the United States and Canada - Celling Treatment Centers: A Minimally Invasive Laser Spine Institute.

 Introducing RegenaDISC - Disc Regeneration for Painful Disc Problems