Spine Surgery

Alternatives to Back Surgery for Herniated and Bulging Discs

There are quite a few alternatives to back surgery for patients with bulging or herniated discs. Back surgery, in general, is one of those procedures where everyone seems to know someone who had a bad experience. Newer techniques aim to try to heal the damage to the disc rather than cutting parts of it out.…read more

Can You Avoid Spinal Stenosis Surgery?

How do you avoid spinal stenosis surgery? How effective is spinal stenosis surgery? How dangerous is spinal stenosis surgery? How long is recovery after spinal stenosis surgery? What activities should be avoided with spinal stenosis? Is walking bad for spinal stenosis? Let’s dig in. What is Spinal Stenosis? When you hear a doctor say “spinal…read more

Scoliosis Treatment in Adults – Is It Possible to Avoid Scoliosis Surgery?

Scoliosis, or a side bending of the spine, is one of those diseases that kind of sneaks up on patients. So let’s take a look at what we know about this disease, scoliosis treatment in adults, what we know works, and whether patients can realistically avoid scoliosis surgery. What is Scoliosis? What Causes it? Scoliosis…read more

What You Need to Know Before Signing Up for Spinal Decompression

Much of modern back surgery is about solving one problem and then creating two others. Spinal decompression is no different. So let’s dive into this topic. Spinal Decompression Addresses One Problem but Creates Another Spinal decompression (aka laminectomy) damages local stabilizing muscles, so it is yet another procedure that in most cases I would label…read more

Spinal Stenosis Surgery Alternatives: Stem Cells or PRP?

What are spinal stenosis surgery alternatives? Dr. Centeno discusses how the use of precise injections of platelet-rich plasma or stem cells can help patients avoid invasive spinal stenosis surgery.

Why Back Surgery Side Effects Are so Common: BFH Syndrome

I write about what I see in clinic and around me. One of the interesting things from this week was a low back pain patient who had surgery that was so invasive it left a hole in his low back. I coined the term BFH syndrome (Big [Insert Expletive] Hole) to describe this back surgery…read more

Fusion Surgery No Better than No Surgery

Does fusion surgery work? I have blogged before about the research showing that this surgery is often no better in the long-run than no surgery. However, I’ve also pointed out that surgeons have a way of interpreting data in studies that benefit their preconceived notions of efficacy. Today’s blog is about one such study which…read more

Disc Replacement Side Effects: New Research Is Concerning

The whole idea behind disc replacement is that it should have fewer side effects than fusing the spine. The artificial disc allows motion, which is, in theory, similar to a normal biologic disc. However, what if an artificial disc ended up distorting normal motion so badly that it still caused the disc above and below…read more