Learning that your spine surgery did not provide the desired results can be incredibly frustrating. However, treatments may help minimize your discomfort and restore your ability to function in daily life. Your doctor may utilize a multidisciplinary approach to treat your pain: Instead of depending on a single treatment, they may propose a combination of therapies that address all aspects of your pain. Your clinician may send you to a physical therapist to regain function or a behavioral health specialist to treat your mental and emotional well-being. Your Spine Center Atlanta physician might prescribe pain drugs, or you may be a candidate for spinal cord stimulation. Whatever therapies are employed, they will be tailored to you and provide you with the maximum chance of recovery.
An overview of failed back surgery syndrome
Failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS) is a condition characterized by persistent back or neck pain, with or without extremities discomfort that arises when spine surgery does not produce the intended results. Recurrent disc herniation, pinched nerves, reduced joint mobility, scar tissue, muscle deconditioning, and degeneration of facet or sacroiliac joints are all contributors. Failed spine surgery has long been a challenging and interesting condition that doctors have attempted to assess and prevent precisely. Additionally, your spine surgeon’s purpose is to assist you in treating discomfort caused by your spine.
How to diagnose FBSS
A range of investigations, imaging tests, and a review of a patient’s medical history are used to diagnose FBSS. Prior surgery is the most crucial indication of FBSS, which is why medical history is so important. A full report of pre-, peri-, and post-operative observations will assist a medical practitioner in reaching a more accurate judgment about the source and type of your discomfort. Family history may also be considered. Various imaging tools and scans can be used to determine where the pain is coming from, whether the surgery was successful, and whether the signs being experienced are due to post-operative complications or indicate that the procedure failed to address the source of the back pain.
Consistency of pain after surgery
Some forms of back surgery are significantly more predictable than others in relieving a patient’s problems. For example:
- A discectomy (or microdiscectomy) for a herniated lumbar disc causing leg discomfort is a relatively predictable procedure. Conversely, a discectomy for a lumbar disc herniation causing lower back discomfort is significantly less likely to be effective.
- A spine fusion for spinal instability (such as spondylolisthesis) is a reasonably predictable procedure. However, a fusion surgery for multi-level lumbar degenerative disc degeneration is considerably less likely to be effective in lowering your discomfort following surgery.
If you are considering spine surgery, it is critical to meet with your surgeon and discuss how it actively works to reduce the likelihood of failed back surgery syndrome. If you have been diagnosed with FBSS, it is not the end of the world. Several other therapy options exist for this condition, but one size does not fit all. It is vital to pick a surgeon who has treated people with FBSS and can provide you with several treatment choices. Call Spine Center Atlanta to schedule your meeting today to determine which failed back surgery procedures suit you.
