Back pain affects 84% of people at some point in their adult lives, translating into widespread pain, mobility problems, and lost productivity.
Highly skilled neurosurgeon Dr. Benjamin Cohen performs an innovative surgery that addresses a range of painful symptoms. Artificial disc replacement therapy, or arthroplasty, may be the solution if you haven’t gotten relief from other treatments.
Dr. Cohen only advises this surgery if you meet certain criteria, however. As with all surgeries he performs, his first choice is to make it minimally invasive because it’s associated with faster recovery and less pain, bleeding, and scarring.
A set of circumstances makes article disc replacement surgery the sensible choice for certain patients. Dr. Cohen recommends this course if:
Your discs are the “shock absorbers” between your vertebrae, and they have soft, gel-like interiors and sturdy exteriors. Degenerative disc disease has many causes, but when you’re younger and your discs are strong, they’re about 80% water. With aging, your discs thin and dry out, so they can’t fulfill their protective function as well anymore.
Also, your discs’ outer shells eventually succumb to years of wear and tear and can’t recover from injuries as well as they once did. Then you’re at risk for a herniated disc, where part of the interior of your disc pushes through its exterior and protrudes into the spinal canal.
Spinal instability is a byproduct of degenerative disc disease that makes it difficult to stand tall and strong. You’re also more prone to suffer from agonizing muscle spasms.
A pinched nerve can cause excruciating pain, numbness, a pins-and-needles sensation, and even leg and arm pain.
When you can’t do the things you love due to chronic pain, you’re bound to experience depression — and with no end in sight for your discomfort and life limitations, it’s understandable if your well-being plummets.
There’s nothing more discouraging than living with prolonged pain and other problems, despite having tried medication, spinal injections, physical therapy, and other conservative treatments. You need another option when you’ve exhausted all of these.
If this reality sounds familiar, it may be time to talk with Dr. Cohen about the option of disc replacement surgery. The idea of a surgical alternative may give you pause, but Dr. Cohen’s expertise, combined with the widespread success of this procedure, should persuade you to consider opting for the surgery.
Dr. Cohen may recommend disc replacement surgery if more conservative treatments don’t successfully relieve your pain and other life-altering symptoms.
With disc replacement surgery, Dr. Cohen can:
Remember, even if degenerative disc disease has brought pain and unwelcome lifestyle changes, there’s hope — even if other treatments have failed. Disc replacement surgery may be the answer for you.
Call our office at 516-246-5008 in Garden City, New York, to arrange a consultation with Dr. Cohen to discuss disc replacement surgery — either in our office or via a telemedicine appointment.
