Types Of Herniated Cervical Disc Surgery

Herniated cervical disc pain is really harrowing. Many people suffer from it. Usually, it happens in the arm and gets over in some days. But if it remains for more than four months, then it should be taken seriously and a herniated cervical disc surgery should be considered.

Herniated cervical disc surgery is reliable and does not produce much pain after the surgery. Also, there are no bad after effects. When done by an experienced surgeon, it rarely involves any risks or complications. In more than 95 percent of the cases, it is known to be successful in treating herniated cervical disc symptoms, such as pain that radiates down the hand accompanied by the numbness in the arm. There are basically three types of herniated cervical disc surgeries:

* Anterior cervical discectomy and spine fusion: It is the most popular method among the surgeons. The method involves the removal of the disc through an incision of one inch in the front of the neck. The disc space is fused after the disc's removal.

* The surgeon can add a plate in front of the graft to provide stability and a better fusion rate.

* Anterior discectomy without spine fusion: This is similar to the previous method; the only difference is that after the disc is removed, the space is left open and no fusion is done by adding a bone. The fusion of disc space still happens in most of the cases, but the time for healing is much longer, and it usually heals in a deformed position.

* Posterior cervical discectomy: This method is similar to a posterior lumbar discectomy, and is considered suitable for discs that come out in the neutral foramen. The method is generally believed to be very difficult because many veins are present, which may cause a lot of bleeding. This bleeding can block the inside view during the surgery. This method involves a larger manipulation of the spinal cord.Like a herniated lumbar disc surgery, there is a lot of risk involved in a herniated cervical disc surgery- there can be damage to one of the major blood vessels in front of the neck. Sometimes a hoarse voice can result after the surgery due to the retraction of the nerves to the voice box. It is known to resolve in a period of 3 months. In extreme cases, the surgery can also damage the nerve root and the spinal cord.

However, these risks are little compared to the pain caused by a herniated cervical disc, so its better to go for the surgery if and when your physician advises it.

Degenerative Spine