I’ve been avoiding spine surgery for the last 11 years, I’ve been fine, sure not 100%, there are things I can’t do much of, but I do live a normal life and mostly pain free. When I do have pain, it’s mild. I found along the way that my issue is one of alignment, of favoring my right side too much, of underpronation. I was able to do things to somewhat alleviate these things, which have improved my quality of life. Spinal fusion wouldn’t have done anything about that. Now I will give credit where credit is due, the doctor who treated me at the ER after my disc herniation counseled me to not do surgery, and he was a back surgeon (in the US). The same with the doctor with whom I did my follow up. Surgery was also presented to me as a very last resort. Had they been a different doctor, maybe I would have done it.
Note that majority of spinal fusions perfomed are not for just back pain. Nerve compression with instability , myelopathy in cervical spine, formainal stenosis etc etc constitute the majority of cases where spine fusion is performed. And not every back pain is just midline back pain. It is wrong to generalize and go on public media and misinform the public . Are you aware of the favor you do to insurance companies?
Thanks to all of you for the great job you are doing.
Ian is a hero. His book is brilliant.
I’ve been avoiding spine surgery for the last 11 years, I’ve been fine, sure not 100%, there are things I can’t do much of, but I do live a normal life and mostly pain free. When I do have pain, it’s mild.
I found along the way that my issue is one of alignment, of favoring my right side too much, of underpronation. I was able to do things to somewhat alleviate these things, which have improved my quality of life. Spinal fusion wouldn’t have done anything about that.
Now I will give credit where credit is due, the doctor who treated me at the ER after my disc herniation counseled me to not do surgery, and he was a back surgeon (in the US). The same with the doctor with whom I did my follow up. Surgery was also presented to me as a very last resort. Had they been a different doctor, maybe I would have done it.
Thank you!
Very informative
You make the public scared of surgeons.
Note that majority of spinal fusions perfomed are not for just back pain. Nerve compression with instability , myelopathy in cervical spine, formainal stenosis etc etc constitute the majority of cases where spine fusion is performed. And not every back pain is just midline back pain. It is wrong to generalize and go on public media and misinform the public . Are you aware of the favor you do to insurance companies?
You have not enough personal volume of surgery on the spine to talk about this subject.