Your experiences with spinal fusion surgery?

[Beemerguy53]

Well, guys...life gets interesting!

My fire service career and my youthful misadventures have been catching up with me for some time, and for the last 11 years I've been dealing with increasingly severe low back pain caused by arthritis, along with all the associated problems -- bulged discs, pinched nerves -- that go along with that.

I have tried everything -- except acupuncture -- over the years to alleviate the pain from this: physical therapy, chiropractic care, nerve blocks, exercise, etc. -- and I have finally gotten to the point where the only remaining option appears to be surgery.

My current symptoms (for about the last two months) include constant severe pain in the lower back running down the left leg, and the doctor who has done my nerve blocks told me I have a herniated disc at the L3 - L4 joint. The surgeon who's been seeing put me on a steroid today in a last-ditch effort to relieve the pain, but told me if I don't feel relief by the end of the week, we will have to schedule a spinal fusion.

What he will do is remove deteriorated pieces of the two vertebrae, as well as the disc between them. He's very direct and honest, as well as conservative, and told me that this will probably relieve the symptoms I now have, but will not restore my spine to what it was; what I have is my new normal.

Have any of you had similar surgery? What was the outcome? Are you better? Worse? No different? How is your quality of life after your surgery compared with before? Side effects? How is your range of motion? Are you physically restricted in any activities?

Thanks for any advice you can provide!

 

[Onomea]

Beemer, my older brother had that done in his early 60s. In his case, after three or so years, he remains 100% satisfied with the results. Pain is gone. He told me that he asked his doc how many of these spinal fusion surgeries he did a year, and the doc guessed 700.

Before going forward, my brother went to another doc in the same city, a similar specialist, and asked him who he thought was the best doc in town for the job. The other doc told him that while he could do the surgery, if he had to have it done himself, he'd use my bro's original doc.

Good luck!

 

[Ron H.]

Sir, FWIW, a few years ago I had a severely herniated disc between L4 and L5, with symptoms similar to yours. I had a microdiscectomy to remove the offending bit of disc that was pressing on the nerve roots. The back/leg pain was gone as soon as they woke me up in the recovery room and hasn't come back.

A buddy of mine whose back is really screwed up (basically no discs left between L3/L4 and L4/L5) looked into spinal fusion. The ortho docs told him that fusion usually results in significant loss of motion and sometimes no pain relief. Sounds kinda "last resort" to me.

Ask if a microdiscectomy is an option. It may or may not be, depending on your particulars, but it's worth looking into.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

 

[Beemerguy53]

Beemer, my older brother had that done in his early 60s. In his case, after three or so years, he remains 100% satisfied with the results. Pain is gone. He told me that he asked his doc how many of these spinal fusion surgeries he did a year, and the doc guessed 700.

Before going forward, my brother went to another doc in the same city, a similar specialist, and asked him who he thought was the best doc in town for the job. The other doc told him that while he could do the surgery, if he had to have it done himself, he'd use my bro's original doc.

Good luck!

Thanks for your input. I'm really glad things worked out for your brother.

I first saw this particular surgeon almost 11 years ago. He told me then I would probably have to undergo surgery "someday"...but being conservative, that is always a last resort to him. He has a sterling reputation in the Baltimore area, and is regarded as one of the premier back surgeons around. If I have to get cut, he's the guy to do it!

I'll see what he says the end of the week...

 

[Beemerguy53]

Sir, FWIW, a few years ago I had a severely herniated disc between L4 and L5, with symptoms similar to yours. I had a microdiscectomy to remove the offending bit of disc that was pressing on the nerve roots. The back/leg pain was gone as soon as they woke me up in the recovery room and hasn't come back.

A buddy of mine whose back is really screwed up (basically no discs left between L3/L4 and L4/L5) looked into spinal fusion. The ortho docs told him that fusion usually results in significant loss of motion and sometimes no pain relief. Sounds kinda "last resort" to me.

Ask if a microdiscectomy is an option. It may or may not be, depending on your particulars, but it's worth looking into.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.

Ron, thanks very much for your input! I will definitely ask my surgeon about a microdiscectomy in my case as an alternative to a spinal fusion.

However....

I've seen the x-rays and MRI results, and you don't have to be a doctor to see that my spine looks like hell! A number of vertebrae are severely deteriorated, so I don't know if I am a candidate for a less drastic operation...but I will at least ask!

Thanks very much, BTW, for your service to our country!

 

[seagill]

My wife has severe back problems as well. Did all the things you tried plus the acupuncture but none gave her relief. The doctors in San Fransisco had her taking 90+ mg of morpphine a day! Since moving here she started doing aqua aerobics and it's worked miracles. Now she only takes anti inflamatories and glucosamine. Her back only hurts when it gets cold. Back surgery is scary, I wish you well and hope you can find relief.

 

[Beemerguy53]

My wife has severe back problems as well. Did all the things you tried plus the acupuncture but none gave her relief. The doctors in San Fransisco had her taking 90+ mg of morpphine a day! Since moving here she started doing aqua aerobics and it's worked miracles. Now she only takes anti inflamatories and glucosamine. Her back only hurts when it gets cold. Back surgery is scary, I wish you well and hope you can find relief.

Thanks! Just to be sure I read your post correctly, your wife has never had surgery, and has gotten her symptoms resolved with aqua aerobics and some non-narcotic drugs? That's great!

Thanks for posting...and please tell your wife I wish her well!

 

[ogilvyspecial]

I've had two back surgeries on the same disc in my lower back and it's herniated once again. On top of that, I should say below that, the next disc down is what's known as "migrated", which means the outer sheath has split open and the jelly-like innner disc material has been flowing out. My last MRI looked like a lava lamp.

The next go around with my Neuro-Surgeon will entail taking out the two offending discs and I get hardware, lucky me. I've been holding out as long as I can hoping that newer technology will come along to make matters a little bit easier.

After two surgeries, which were a piece of cake, I'm not too worried about that aspect of it all, it's the long term ramifications that are the great unknown..........

 

[madmikeb]

I had 2 "lumbar laminectomies" ( I don't know if thats spelled correctly) done by a neurosurgeon several years ago. I was given the choice between this and fusion and I went with the least invasive procedure. The first one was the bottommost disc, a few months later the next one up. Before surgery the pain was severe in my lower back, down my left leg, I was pretty much a non-functioning basket case and had been carted off to the hospital in the ambulance twice in agony. Both surgeries went off without a hitch. Both day surgeries, went home that night. The relief was instant and wonderful. I tell people that I literally crawled into the hospital in the morning, and walked out that night. I even did the recovery from the second one without any painkillers, and stopped at Arby's on the way home and had lunch. Since the surgeries I have felt great, I won't say I'm perfect but I am able do everything I want. Some days I'll be a little sore. to much sleep, or sitting around doesn't agree with me but overall the improvement is 100%. I've have a friend who has had a couple fusions and he hasn't had very good luck. The Dr who did this for me is my hero, and I would definately discuss this with your Dr before having the fusion done.

 

[Smith357]

My wife underwent the knife for lower back pain about 8 years ago. She had a few nuts and bolts added and had a fusion of the L3 L4 done. It did seem to help in the short term, but over time it only got worse again. I just mentioned this post to her and she groaned and said, "I would not wish that pain on anybody"

The hardware in her back makes it a bit more difficult to get through airport or courthouse security, but her range of motion is not too limited. she was never athletic though, so I really don't know for sure what the limitations have been.

Her most recent adventure has been a implanted spinal stimulator to block pain signals to the brain. she had it put in about 2 months ago and it seems to be lowering her dependency on the drugs but is still no panacea.

Best of luck to you in your search for pain relief.



Oh one other thing, the fusion took about and inch of height away from her.

 

[Jswiney9]

My father in law had the fusion surgery as a last result and wow is he a new man. He has lost a lot of his range of motion but he gets around A LOT better than he did before. He had a rough time recovering but now everything is fine and dandy, strong as a bear and gets to pittle around the house/tinker a bit. I can not believe the difference it has made with him and now my father is planning on getting the surgery done to see how it does for him.

 

[Mule88]

My fusion was in my neck, but I was in tremendous pain for months and to make a long story short in 1997 I had C4 and C5 fused and when I woke up in recovery and felt I could move my feet and the pain was instantly gone, what a relief that was. The pain has never returned, no complications, the only thing is i noticed I dont have the movement in my neck like it did, but its not bad at all. Good luck and let us know how your surgery goes when you have it.

 

[451 Detonics]

I have been fighting the back fusion thing for years. I have had two surgeries on my back so far and the next step is fusion but would likely involve at least 5 vertebrae. I did the original damage while in the military and degenerative disc disease has been progressing for the past 20 years. Currently methadone is doing a so so job of pain moderation but my neurosurgeon and I have decided that as long as I can walk we will hold off on the surgery to start fusing and adding hardware.

Everyone's case is different but I would resist the fusion surgery till all other avenues are explored. I wish you the best no matter what happens.

 

[bassoneer]

I've had three back surgeries on the same disc (L4-L5), all were discectomies where they only removed the ruptured portion of the disc. Each one fixed the problem (leg pain), but it came back twice...exactly two-years apart. However, the third surgery seems to have held...it has been 6 or 7 years now and I'm doing great. There isn't much disc left, so the neurosurgeon says next time will be a fusion. Even with the fusion, there are multiple ways of doing it. I honestly believe neurosugeons are the best ones to do this (one of my surgeries was with an orthopedic surgeon and I think he may be better with knees). I found that each time I had an operation, the incision hurt a little more during recovery because of tugging and pulling around all the scar tissue that developed after the earlier surgeries.

I have lots of friends who have had fusions...some great, some still fight with loss of flexibility and pain. However, back surgery in general is much better than it used to be. There are some artificial discs on the market if you are in the right age/weight category to receive then. Also, some surgeons go in from the front and install titanium "bird cages" to temporarily hold the structure together while the bones fuse together. Others go in from the back and use bone, along with rods and screws to fix things up. I'm not sure which is best, but as long as you have a neurosurgeon who is a back specialist...I think that is the right way to go.

Good luck with your surgery! Let us know how you feel as you are recovering...we hope and pray that your leg pain is long gone and you can return to your normal activities! B

 

[perrazi]

had to have a fusion with bone grafts done on aug 18,1987. absolutely couldn't walk when i went in the hospital and within s hort time was able to move again. i was told at the time to expect 15-20 yrs of use before it starts going bad and has to be redone. the drs. wanted to redo mine back in 04 but i resisted and got on a pain management program. it includes certain exercises,oral pain drugs, and regular epidurals. i will have to undergo another surgery in the near future as the epidurals are losing effectiveness. this time it will be the original 4,plus the 2 directly above to be joined with fixation (metal parts). the techniques they have now are far better that when i did the first one. don't let anyone tell you it is painless,because it's not. pain management is better as is the finished product. i will do at because the alternative is unworkable for me. that is a decision you have to make with your dr. sounds like you have a good one of those. you will never be 100% again and will have to make some adjustments, but there is life afterwards. good luck to you and if you want to talk about this, feel free to pm me.

 

[gamedic]

Three of the paramedics I work with had back injuries and surgeries in their thirties. The first on had a fusion and it has been about ten years, I work with him every shift and he has no pain or loss of motion. The second one is my supervisor. He ended up having five fusions and a six inch ladder appliance put in his lower back. He did about six months of rehabilitation and has had no problems since. he is pain free and only occasionally has a stiff back. He works out daily and we play golf about once a week. The third one wasn,t as lucky the first time around. He had surgery to fuse disc in his lower back. He woke from surgery in more pain than before and it only got worse over the next few months. He found a new doctor and had a second surgery. He said he woke from surgery feeling much better. It has only been a few months but he is back at work and has only minor back pain, which the doctor said is due to pressure on the nerves for several months after the first surgery. The doctor said that the lingering minor pain will go away as the nerves heal. Even though it took two surgeries to fix his back he says he is much better than he was before the surgeries. All three of these guys were able to return to normal lives after the surgeries, before the surgeries they were all three unable to live much of a life. Thank God I don't have back pain. I hope you are able to find relief quickly.

 

[ladder13]

I've had both a laminectomy and a microdiscectomy, during the same procedure back in early 2008, L4-L5-S1. I've had somewhat mixed results, but was glad that I had the procedures performed. Spinal fusion is a whole different level, and I hope I don't have to go there.
Btw, cervical fusion is amazing. My friend had it done about 2 years ago. They locked his head in a vise, to keep it from moving, and went in thru a small incision at the neckline. The neurosurgeon then moved his trachea out of the way, and inserted 2 steel plates and some stainless screws in his neck. I saw the x-rays, it was an incredible sight to behold.

 

[Brian41]

You're all making me feel better with your good results and this thread is timely for me.
I have a doctor appointment tomorrow to see if another sick leave and PT will help my back again as it did last year.
When I saw the surgeon last year he told me it wasn't if I needed surgery but a matter of when. I'm hoping to put it off as long as I can and am hoping for improvements with less invasive surgeries.
My wife is a surgical tech and has done many procedures with my surgeon. I'm afraid she's described it a little too much in detail as it scares the heck out of me.

 

[MakeMyNight]

I've never heard 100% results from anyone I know, who's had the vertebrae fusion performed.

Back about 10 years ago My Doc performed a triple laminectomy, and microdiscectomy to L3/L4, L4/L5 & L5/S1, and it reduced My excruciating back pain to tolerable back pain.

Last time I visited the Neurosurgeon's office, they advised Me to be careful and NOT hurt My back again, or I'd need to be fused. So far, so good!

Hope that the surgery helps, and makes life easier for You!

 

[ohiobuckeye]

First, make certain you have reached the point where surgery is your only remaining option and do that by getting more than one doctor's opinion. Ask lots of questions and choose a surgeon who has a good track record with lot's of surgeries performed WITH a high success rate. After the surgery, do exactly what he tells you, do the exercises, and don't take it on your own to do foolish things because you feel good enough to do it. After a few days, assuming the surgery was a total success, the local soreness from the surgery will go away and you will have zero pain and will feel like you can do anything you want....DON"T. Follow instructions, and stay well within the limits set by your doctor. You will not be fully healed for about one full year and doing anything stupid in that first year, especially the first six months, puts you at risk for a future of pain and regret....BEHAVE no matter how you are tempted. Return to normal activity gradually over that year and stay within the prescribed limitations. Read the literature they give you, follow the instructions from your doctor and physical therapist, and rid yourself of all the bad habits that screwed up your back in the first place.....Learn to lift with your arms and legs...not your back.
My L4-L5 repair is 30 years old and still good and pain free. A couple of friends who had similar surgery about the same time as me, did not fare so well. I caught one splitting firewood with a splitting maul about five weeks after surgery, and the other admitted to similar acts of stupidity. Both did not heal well and continue to have long term back pain. If you return to work, forget about any macho crap and walk away from anything the least bit risky. There may be a few cohorts spouting "aw this won't hurt you" or "give us hand we have to get this done"...baloney...it ain't their pain free future at risk. It will feel so good being pain free you will feel like you can do anything...but you better not...listen well and do what you are told.