Back pain is one of the most common medical problems in the world. An estimated 619 million people suffer from back pain worldwide. Here in the U.S., about 28% of the population reported experiencing back pain in 2022. Just under half said they had been experiencing it for a minimum of five years.
That’s a long time to deal with back pain. It’s a long time to continually try non-surgical treatments without success. Indeed, sometimes surgery is the only way to address a patient’s persistent pain. Enter spinal fusion. As a surgical procedure, spinal fusion is a second-line treatment for pain caused by degenerative disc disease.
More About Degenerative Disc Disease
The human vertebrae comprise more than a dozen bones. In between each bone is a spinal disc. These discs act as shock absorbers. In a person with degenerative disc disease, the discs slowly deteriorate over time. As they do, they are no longer as effective. The amount of shock and friction they can effectively handle is reduced. One of the end results is chronic back pain.
What Spinal Fusion Accomplishes
Movement of the various bones in the back is what causes pain for someone with degenerative disc disease. Spinal fusion is a procedure designed to limit that movement. It is a procedure that joins, or fuses, multiple vertebrae to stabilize the spine and prevent painful movement.
Spinal fusion is most often performed in the regions of the lower back or the neck. But it can be performed on any section of the spine subject to degenerative disc disease. From the pain doctor’s perspective, it is a matter of correctly identifying the problem areas and treating them effectively.
How the Procedure Works
Spinal fusion is a simple procedure in principle. It can be somewhat complicated in practice, however. During the procedure, the surgeon removes the damaged disc and replaces it with either a spacer or a bone graft. Often, screws or a cage will hold a replacement material in place while the two bones gradually grow together.
This natural bone growth ultimately fuses the two bones to create one. This eliminates any movement and reduces back pain.
A spinal fusion procedure can provide significant pain relief. It can be a game changer for someone who is otherwise disabled by back pain. And of course, any reduction in pain tends to improve function and a patient’s quality of life.
It Is Still Surgical in Nature
Despite its general success, spinal fusion is not a good treatment for every patient. It is still a surgical treatment at the end of the day. Here at Lone Star Pain Medicine, spinal fusion is on our list of treatments. But we offer a list of additional, non-invasive treatments that we often recommend first:
- Discography
- Lumbar sympathetic block
- Medial branch block
- Discoscopic discectomy
- Radiofrequency neurotomy
- Disc nucleoplasty
- Laser discoplasty
- Spinal cord stimulation
The most important thing to know here is that degenerative disc disease will not get better on its own. Once the discs in the back begin to deteriorate, it’s only a matter of time before they cause pain. For some people, the pain is mild. For others, it is debilitating.
If you are dealing with degenerative disc disease and the treatments recommended by your GP are not working, we invite you to make an appointment with our clinic. Lone Star Pain Medicine doctors can offer you additional treatments – including spinal fusion, if necessary.
Spinal fusion may not be the best choice for you. If so, we have other treatments that could offer the relief you’re seeking.
