Like many people reading this blog, along with bulging discs and Spinal Stenosis, I have Degenerative Disc Disease. It’s...
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The most commonly searched term on this blog is “pain after discectomy”. So I’ve decided I would dedicate a...
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The stiff, aching and often burning sensation in my lower spine started in my late twenties and ten years later, when I had my...
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In May of 2015, the Sciatic pain down my left leg was so intense that I couldn’t get out of bed for three weeks. I had...
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In 2011, as my neurosurgeon was explaining the results of the laminectomy, he casually mentioned that I had condition known as Spinal Stenosis, most likely congenital and most likely the cause of my Sciatica. Of course, this was all news to me and I wondered why it hadn’t been noticed on the MRI scan. Regardless, I had a new back ailment to add to the list and one that laminectomy should partially fix.
Exercise is an important step towards recovering from any injury. When you’re dealing with herniated discs it’s particularly tricky to find the right routine to get your strength and flexibility back. And if your lower back is as temperamental as mine, you’re constantly reminded that one wrong twist or bend could land you back in bed for or worse, the operating table.
For every operation I’ve had, I’ve encountered an unforeseen complication like numbness in my foot or inflammation around scar tissue. For every pill there’s been some side effect especially pain medication that alters digestion and forces my liver to work much harder than it should. For every therapy there’s been some muscle soreness or overstretched ligaments. I’ve come to the conclusion that the best I can hope for are back pain remedies that keep most biological systems in check, and that’s how I came to acupuncture.
Can you really put a price on a healthy back ? You certainly can. And if you’re suffering from a herniated disc it’ll cost you anywhere between $20k – $80k depending on your surgical team and the type of surgery you choose – minimally invasive costing less. For patients that have a good insurance policy, the deductible is pegged at somewhere between 10 to 40 percent of the cost of the procedure.
Some forum users at Spine-Health and eHealth provide a few facts and figures into the cost of their surgery as well as cheaper options such as signing up for clinical trials. “Average national costs were about $14,000 for a single-level ACDF procedure and $26,000 for a single-level PLF. (These total figures reflected combined professional and facility costs.) Average cost for KA was about $13,000, increasing to $22,000 for TKA in patients with accompanying other major medical conditions.”
Hub Pages provides an example of the costs associated with Microdiscectomy.
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Description
|
Amount (USD)
|
|---|---|
|
Hospital Services:
|
|
|
Anesthesia
|
1128.00
|
|
Medical Supplies
|
1969.00
|
|
Pharmacy
|
978.50
|
|
Radiology
|
646.00
|
|
Recovery Room
|
2466.00
|
|
Surgery
|
4586
|
|
Surgeon’s Fee:
|
6329.00
|
|
Anesthesiologist’s Fee:
|
1890.00
|
|
TOTAL CHARGES:
|
$19,992.25
|
Fortunately, for those of us living in Canada, microdiscectomy cost is covered by the government. Universal health is definitely one of the major benefits of living North of the 49th parallel. Perhaps another option for those Americans looking to get a microsurgery done sooner rather than later. Here’s Warner Nickerson’s story of getting the procedure done in Croatia. And if you live in France, this study states a discectomy costs around $650 US (approx. 4000 Francs).
In 2010 I was diagnosed with having a Schwannoma off an L1/L2 root nerve. After studying my MRI, the neurosurgeon told me that the pain I was experiencing near the middle of my back, which had me vigorously pinching my side, was most likely a tumor. The word ‘tumor’ got my heart racing and I immediately thought of a life threatening scenario but after some brief consultation with said neurosurgeon, I was relieved to find out that Schwannoma’s are typically benign and not likely to cause serious harm. However, the best option for immediate pain relief was to remove it. I agreed to the operation and this began a long period of recovery.
Something I use daily (along with Tumeric in my smoothie) to naturally fight inflammation. It’s important to use fish oil with a high EPA of 500 or more as this is the inflammation fighting element.
Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is a surgical procedure to treat nerve root or spinal cord compression by decompressing the spinal cord and nerve roots of the cervical spine with a discectomy in order to stabilize the corresponding vertebrae. This procedure is used when other non-surgical treatments have failed.
Source: Wikipedia
The symptoms of Sciatica are fairly easy to diagnose but the pain can range from mild tingling to extreme burning causing crippling discomfort. Pain radiating down one leg is generally the first sign but others include weakness in the leg or foot (footdrop), and numbness. There’s plenty of exercises on Youtube that show ways to alleviate the symptoms of Sciatica but in extreme cases, when compression of lumbar nerves sends sharp waves of pain down through the calf and ankle, stretching may not help.
In September of 2011 I underwent a Laminectomy for a herniated disc at L5/S1. The operation was performed by a Neurosurgeon who advised decompression to alleviate a large herniated disc applying pressure to a nerve root. He also performed another procedure unrelated to the L5/S1 disc issue which I won’t discuss at the moment. The entire procedure lasted approximately 5 hours and I stayed one night at the hospital.
An actual lumbar microdiscectomy performed by a qualified surgeon. Warning: video contains blood, tissues, bone etc…not for the squeamish.
