Question 1

what do you advise if i'm having a cervical fusion and disc removal i need imput?

Accepted Answer

Cervical fusion: Cervical discectomy and fusion is usually indicated if there is significant compression of a nerve with loss of strength and/or numbness in the arm.  This technique is usually not as effective for treating neck pain.  If you do not have weakness or numbness, all conservative measures (PT, steroid injections, etc) should be exhausted prior to considering surgery.

Question 2

if a cervical spinal fusion been determined to fused properly should the neck hardware be removed?

Accepted Answer

Patient's option: You do not have to remove the hardware. Doing so is a second operation, that does not need to be done.

Question 3

i had neck injury fractured c1, c2 and occipital in a roll over car accident not wearing seat belt in august 2021 and had posterior cervical fusion on 12/31/21 and now have more pain than prior to the fusion. do they ever remove the hardware?

Accepted Answer

: Only if the fracture is stable.  Go back to the original surgeon and get some images to ensure other levels are not involved.  The hardware can come out if the fracture is healed and doesn’t need to be stabilized any longer.  Good luck and feel better.

Question 4

nerve damage to groin and hip area after illiac crest bone harvest. what's it called and is it reversable? six months post op. cervical fusion of c6-c7 with autograft from hip and hardware. sensations range from numb, sharp quick pins and needles and sand

Accepted Answer

There : There are a few nerves around the pelvis that could be injured during graft harvest.  The most common one is the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve which supplies the skin on the outside of the thigh.  From your description, it is more likely the ilioinguinal or pedundal nerve that is affected.  Since i don't know where the bone was harvested (anterior or posterior crest), i don't know how the nerve might have been injured.

Most of these nerve injuries are what are called neurapraxias.  The nerves recover with time, but can be painful for several months to a year.  A charring injury from the cautery used during surgery also recovers with time.

If the nerve is partially (axonotmesis) or completely (neurotmesis) severed, the recovery is less predictable.  The nerve fibers have to regrow and find their way to the nerve endings.  If they "get lost" they can cause a painful ball of nerve fibers called a neuroma.  Nerves take a month to start growing and grow at 1mm/day or about an inch a month.  Based on the location of the injury and the distance to the nerve endings, it can take a long time to regenerate.

Injured nerves can be very irritable and send any stimulus as a painful signal.  To quiet the nerve, we use desensitization techniques.  By constantly giving the nerve a low level stimulus, it "learns" what is normal and stops the painful signal.  Then you increase the stimulation until that feels normal.

While Neurontin can be helpful, I have had better pain control (though not necessarily side effects) with lyrica (pregabalin).  Insurers are often reluctant to cover it because it's more expensive.  Amitriptyline or nortriptyline can enhance the effects, but also add to the sedation.

It is possible you may need surgery to explore the nerve and remove a possible neuroma, though that would likely leave an area of numbness.  Only your surgeon knows what the likelihood of that is.  Nerve conduction studies usually are not very helpful in this area and can be painful to get, particularly if the nerve is quite irritable.

To date we do not have any means of making nerves function.  We can decompress them, repair them, remove neuromas, and even transfer them, but they have to work on their own.  Maybe in the future we will have nerve growth factors or stem cells to help boost nerve function.  For now, however, nerve pain remains a frustratingly difficult problem.

Question 5

can a 4 disc cervical fusion be reversed?

Accepted Answer

????: Why did it not go well. Cannot be reversed perhaps revised by be careful may make it worse

Question 6

i'm curious as to what can i expect in a cervical fusion?

Accepted Answer

Anterior cervical: An anterior cervical fusion is one of the most common procedures done in neurosurgery.This is often done for a herniated disc that is squeezing a nerve root. The procedure involves an incision on the front of the neck. The surgeon removes the disc in question and a graft  is placed. This keeps the space open.A metal plate is placed across this to hold it in place.Variations in technique exist.

Question 7

how long does it take for a cervical fusion to completely heal?

Accepted Answer

Cervical fusion: Cervical fusions have a very high fusion rate (greater than 95%) if there is a cage/bone graft and titanium plate. The fusion rates range from 3 months to 1 year. Patients who smoke, are elderly, suffer from osteoporosis, diabetes, and have had multiple levels fused may take longer to heal.

Question 8

if my cervical fusion failed, do i have to pay to get it corrected?

Accepted Answer

Ask Insurance: This probably depends a lot on your insurance carrier.  If you have a failure of fusion (pseudoarthrosis) then most likely your insurance will cover the repair surgery.

Question 9

if u were needing cervical fusion & could not afford to get treated in usa, what country wud u go to be treated?

Accepted Answer

US: You can receive the care that you need here.  Many surgeons and hospitals will work with you to provide you the care that you need and help to reduce your financial burden.  I would suggest that you also seek care at a university teaching hospital as they typically have very good financial assistance programs.

Question 10

how serious is cervical spinal fusion..?

Accepted Answer

A common procedure: Cervical spinal fusion for a herniated cervical disc is a common procedure done by neurosurgeons and orthopedic spine surgeons. There are certainly risks to the surgery, but in the proper hands the outcomes are excellent. You also need to evaluate the situation and ensure that the symptoms can be treated effectively with the fusion.

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Doctor answers about:

Cervical fusion hardware removal

A member asked:

What do you advise if i'm having a cervical fusion and disc removal i need imput?

A member asked:

If a cervical spinal fusion been determined to fused properly should the neck hardware be removed?

A member asked:

I had neck injury fractured c1, c2 and occipital in a roll over car accident not wearing seat belt in august 2021 and had posterior cervical fusion on 12/31/21 and now have more pain than prior to the fusion. do they ever remove the hardware?

A member asked:

Nerve damage to groin and hip area after illiac crest bone harvest. what's it called and is it reversable? six months post op. cervical fusion of c6-c7 with autograft from hip and hardware. sensations range from numb, sharp quick pins and needles and sand

A member asked:

Can a 4 disc cervical fusion be reversed?

A member asked:

I'm curious as to what can i expect in a cervical fusion?

A member asked:

How long does it take for a cervical fusion to completely heal?

A member asked:

If my cervical fusion failed, do i have to pay to get it corrected?

A member asked:

If u were needing cervical fusion & could not afford to get treated in usa, what country wud u go to be treated?

A member asked:

How serious is cervical spinal fusion..?

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