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Anatomy of the Back
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about the different parts of your back.
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Orthopaedic & Spine Institute
Spine Surgery
Our team of spine surgery specialists will work with you and your primary care specialists to find non-surgical solutions to your spine injury or condition. If surgery is the right solution, the physicians at the Spine Center at Saint Agnes Hospital have the training and skill you can trust.
Taking care of an injured spine is more than making a diagnosis. It is the skilled, hands-on evaluation and appropriate diagnostic testing that determines the best plan of spine care; remembering of course, that you are not just treating back pain, but a human being.
Eight out of every ten Americans will experience a lifestyle-altering episode of back pain at some point in their lives. Ninety percent of single episodes of back pain become recurrent. While certain diseases and traumatic injury can cause back pain, research shows that the most common causes of back pain or injury are: poor physical condition, poor posture, improper body mechanics, and the prolonged repetitive, and incorrect, bending or lifting. At the Spine Center at Saint Agnes, preventing and relieving back pain and spinal disorders is our specialty.
If a surgical procedure becomes the right choice, our team of specialists is trained to effectively correct problems related to:
- Traumatic and overuse injuries to the spine
- Spinal deformities both acquired and congenital
- Whiplash injuries
- Systemic diseases affecting spinal function
- Degenerative spinal conditions
- Spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis
- Herniated disc lesions
- Soft tissue sprains, strains, and contusions
- Work-related back pain
- Mechanical back dysfunction
- Fractures, dislocations, subluxations
Types of Spine Surgery
Depending on the nature of your back problem, your doctor may recommend one of the following surgical procedures.
Aspiration percutaneous lumbar diskectomy (APLD)
In this procedure, a surgeon loosens and removes disk material through a needle
inserted though your back muscles at the side of your spine, into the center
of the disk. A small blade, inserted through the needle, whirls and breaks
apart the disk material. A salt solution, flowing through the needle, liquefies
the material, which is suctioned out. The procedure can be performed under
local anesthesia.
Laminectomy
A surgeon removes the lamina (the bone overlying the spinal cord and nerves)
and removes disk fragments that press on nerve roots in your spine.
Laminotomy
A surgeon removes a small piece of the lamina and scrapes out protruding disk
material.
Microsurgery
Microsurgery can be used successfully on a small disk bulge that’s pressing
on a branch of the sciatic nerve—a group of nerves bound in one nerve
sheath that runs from the lower back through the buttocks and thigh to the
knee. It offers advantages over conventional surgery, including a shorter
hospital stay, fewer complications and less postoperative pain.
Spinal fusion
This major operation involves a bone graft (usually bone from the pelvis and
chips from the spine) that is intended to fuse to the lower spinal vertebrae
and prevent painful motion of the spine. Months of casting and bracing are
required to immobilize the back and promote a solid fusion.
Deciding whether surgery is right for you can be difficult. Back problems that do not improve with rest and over-the-counter medications do not always require surgery. Most experts agree you should get a second opinion before deciding on surgery.
To speak to someone about spine surgery or to find an expert physician near you, call 1-866-690-9355 (WELL).
