The S-shaped part of our body made of 33 individual bones stacked one on top of the other and which makes it possible for us to stand, walk, bend or twist, spine is said to be the ultimate support of our body. Spine is composed of numerous muscles, bones, flexible tendons and ligaments, and a lot of sensitive nerves, and a minor pinch or jerk to any of them, is enough to bring you down with pain.A discomfort in spine is so bad that it can make anyone extremely restless. And when painkillers, compression treatments, massage therapy, acupuncture, nothing makes the pain go away, surgery is what comes to mind. Of course, it is necessary in some cases but in the eagerness to get rid of the pain, we fall for it. No matter what, surgery is something which should be always kept as the last resort as risks follow.
Spinal Fusion Surgery
In order to eliminate the painful motion caused by severe fractures, infections, and degenerative changes in spine, the surgeon fuses the two or more vertebrae present in the spine using hardware such as screws and plates and bone grafts that cause the bones to grow together.Potential risks and complications Misplacement: The screws and plates placed to support the fusion site carries the risk of becoming loose, breaking or getting misplaced, leading to more complicated surgeries.
Infection: Though the patient is given antibiotics before, during, and often after surgery, infections do occur in some cases.
Bleeding and clots: Quite an amount of bleeding is acceptable but excessive, is bad. On the contrary, if it clots, they pose a huge danger as clots can break and travel to the lungs.
Adjacent segment degeneration : One of the unique risk associated with fusion surgery, also known as transitional syndrome, occurs when the joints or discs surrounding the fusion site, wear at an accelerated rate due to the increased pressure on them.
Pain at graft site: Bone grafting site can become painful for some patients after the surgery
Pseudarthrosis: Failed spine fusion or the unhealed area of the bone may result into this condition. Moving too soon—before the bone is able to start fusing—may also result in a pseudarthrosis. Second surgery will then be required to fix this.
Recurring symptom: Some patients complain about experiencing the same symptoms they had before surgery.
Spinal Fusion Surgery Recovery depends upon various factors like the patient's pathology, prior physical condition, prior and overall health, the type and extensiveness of fusion method, the surgeon's skill and expertise, and the individual's perception of pain and recovery. The very least it takes at least 12-18 months for the complete recovery.
Alternatives There are few alternatives to avoid spinal fusion surgery which are not only cost-effective but also less/non-invasive and natural ones like:
Spine Strengthening Exercises :
Approach an expert and practice the exercises designed to strengthen the deep spinal muscles regularly to get permanent relief, as chances are you may get cured with it.Stem Cell Therapy :
A minimally invasive and non-surgical treatment that can significantly improve the condition of your spine, reducing the risk and recovery time as well. Our own adult stem cells are injected into the damaged disc, which repairs the condition in no time.Electrotherapy :
One of the best and the safest method to recover from the spine condition is usingElectrotherapy machine . These battery-powered devices are known to speed up the healing process without any harmful effects.