ABC News: Back Pain Revolution Replacement Disc Surgery

[Guest guest]

Hi

This subject has come up previously, and I thought it

would be helpful to those considering back surgery.

All of this information is from www.abcnews.com in the

Health Section.

Kaylene

Moderator

Here is a link and Dr. Tim 's bog about the 3

part series.

http://abcnews.blogs.com/theworldnewser/

Treating back pain

Dr. Tim blogs about his piece on tonight's

broadcast. It's part of a three part series on low

back pain:

Low back pain is an affliction that strikes the

majority of Americans at least once in their lives. We

begin with a look at the most dramatic treatment for a

degenerated disc - replacement with an artificial

disc. During this procedure, the surgeon takes out the

bad disc and puts in a three part device that allows

the spine to actually move in a semi normal way. This

procedure is widely used in Europe, less so in the

U.S. It works on people with only a single bad disc

and good bone density. But for some, it is truly a

" miracle " cure.

Tomorrow night we look at two much more common

operations - discectomy (removal of all or part of a

slipped/herniated disc) and fusion (fusing two or more

vertebrae, the individuals bones of the back) which

uses bone grafts, screws and rods, sometimes other

techniques to make the back bones immoveable. Fusions,

especially, are controversial because they are done in

large numbers (third most common operation in the

U.S.) with mixed results. For this operation, second

opinions are definitely in order.

Finally, on Wednesday, the most important topic of

all: how to avoid surgery. In fact about 90% of people

with low back pain will get better with conservative

treatment - physical therapy, anti inflammatory meds,

etc. So unless the back pain is accompanied by severe

leg symptoms or bowel/bladder problems, " tincture of

time " is usually the best treatment. Buyer beware.

This is part 1, and the site in the series.

http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/Dr/story?id=1991281 & WNT=true

Back Pain Revolution:

Replacement Disc Surgery

World News Tonight Begins Series on Back Pain

Treatments

By DR. TIM JOHNSON

May 22, 2006 — A radical new surgery may help a woman

in her 20s find a way to dance at her sister's

wedding.

Twenty-five year-old Tricia Lowe has struggled with a

bad disc in her lower back since she was 9 and fell on

a trampoline. But after a car accident last year, her

pain became unbearable.

" At its worst, I can't breathe, I'm lying there, I'm

in so much pain, " Lowe said.

All her friends are getting married, but because of

her bad back, Lowe stopped attending weddings.

" I can't walk around … like I used to, " she said. " I

can't dance with my friends, and I sit there and I

watch everybody doing all the things I can't do. "

Getting a New Disc

After trying everything, including acupuncture and

electrical stimulation, Lowe finally decided on the

most radical surgery now available and had the injured

disc replaced with an artificial one at New York's

Lenox Hill Hospital. When Lowe had the surgery, her

doctor made a small incision in her abdomen to reach

her spine and remove the bad disc.

It was then replaced by an artificial disc made of

three parts, including two metal plates that attach to

the vertebrae above and below the affected disc with

movable plastic in between.

The whole procedure took about 90 minutes, and

afterward an X-ray showed Lowe's new disc was in the

perfect position.

She was an ideal candidate for the disc replacement

surgery, because she is young with good bone strength

and only one damaged disc.

Her surgeon, Dr. Fabien Bitan, the chief of spine

surgery at Lenox Hill Hospital, has performed this

surgery on 300 patients and says, overall, he has had

good results.

Two days after the surgery, Lowe said much of her old

pain had already vanished. Now she has her eye on

December and dancing at her sister's wedding.

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