Bulging disc surgery can be highly effective in minimizing, or even eliminating, symptoms of pain, stiffness, numbness, tingling, muscle weakness, and muscle spasms, but it is not for everyone. In fact, surgery is generally regarded as a last resort treatment method, only available to about five to ten percent of people, that is sought out when various conservative (nonsurgical) treatment methods have been employed with no or little avail. If conservative treatments have failed to work for you, there’s a chance you might fall into the small group of people who are candidates for bulging disc surgery. Consult with your doctor and other physicians about surgery and the risks involved to receive multiple medical opinions before jumping right in. Also, talk to your family and friends about the possibility of surgery and developing a support system before making a decision about surgery.

Open Back Bulging Disc Surgery

Open back surgery is a form of back surgery that has been performed since the early 1900s, and is typically what comes to mind when people think of spine surgery. This form of surgery is anything but glamorous. Patients undergoing open back bulging disc surgery are fully sedated with general anesthesia before the procedure even starts. After the patient is sedated, the surgeon will cut a large incision into the patient’s back to expose the spine. In some cases, incisions are made into the side of the neck for cervical spine surgery or through the abdomen for lumbar (lower back) spine surgery. Many times, muscle in the back will cut or stripped to allow the surgeon to better navigate areas within the spine. The surgeon then performs whatever surgery method is required, be it a discectomy (removing a disc), laminectomy (removing bone around the spinal cord), spinal fusion (fusing two vertebrae together), or something completely different. Afterwards, patients of open spine surgery are required to spend a night or more in a hospital before they are free to go. Even when patients are free to go, they must endure a long and arduous recovery period, waiting several months until regular daily activities may resume.

Endoscopic Bulging Disc Surgery

A highly popular alternative to open surgery is endoscopic spine surgery. Endoscopic spine surgery is newer than open spine surgery, but it has actually been performed on patients for decades now. Before endoscopicsurgery, patients are sedated with local anesthesia and deep IV sedation. The surgeon will cut a comparatively small incision, no larger than one inch in length, into the patient’s back around the problematic area of the spine. The surgeon will then insert a small camera through an equally small tube. The camera is connected to a TV monitor in the operating room, and is used to help the surgeon navigate the spine without cutting or stripping any muscle tissue. A laser and other small surgical tools are carefully placed into the incision and used to perform various individual procedures. No hospital stay is required of patients after surgery, although a post-operative appointment will probably be required the following day. After the patient leaves, he or she will go through a significantly shorter recovery period than that of open back bulging disc surgery.

Patrick Foote is the Director of eBusiness at Laser Spine Institute, the leader in endoscopic spine surgery. Laser Spine Institute specializes in safe and effective outpatient procedures for bulging discs and several other spinal conditions.

Patrick Foote is the Director of eBusiness at Laser Spine Institute, the leader in endoscopic spine surgery. Laser Spine Institute specializes in safe and effective outpatient procedures for bulging discs and other spinal conditions. http://www.laserspineinstitute.com/back_problems/bulging_disc/

Author Bio: Patrick Foote is the Director of eBusiness at Laser Spine Institute, the leader in endoscopic spine surgery. Laser Spine Institute specializes in safe and effective outpatient procedures for bulging discs and several other spinal conditions.

Category: Medicines and Remedies
Keywords: Bulging disc