Cervical Spine Surgery - An Introduction
Cervical spine problems, associated with symptoms such as pain in the spine and abnormalities in the neck area and the arms, occur when any kind of change takes place in the cervical region of the spine or in the intervertebral discs in the cervical region of the spine. Pressure is exerted due to these structural changes on the spinal cord and on nerves that come out of the openings in cervical vertebrae, which may in turn also affect hand use and normal walking. Cervical spine surgery is performed to significantly reduce the pain due to these causes.
Cervical spine surgery gives relief from pain in the neck, arms, and legs, and the associated tingling and numbness. It helps in restoration of the nerve function and reduces any abnormalities in the spine. Cervical spine surgery can be performed from the front as well as the back. However, the front approach is mostly used. It results in less disruption of the muscular structure and also enables the normal alignment of the spine.
Cervical spine treatment is performed by removal of the ruptured disc or bone and through fusion of vertebrae with the help of a graft on either the front or the back of the spine. There are two types of bone grafts that are used for this surgery, namely the autograft and the allograft.
An autograft is the bone taken from your body and an allograft refers to the bone taken from a bone bank. In some cases, other options are also used such as plates, wires or screws in order to lend support to the spine and stabilize it. The performance of surgery on the affected vertebrae results in an end to the undesirable motion caused in the spine due to the cervical problem in the spine. Now let us see how this surgery is performed by surgeons and the aspects that they keep in mind while doing it. In this surgery, an incision is made in the center at the back of the neck. Then the muscles are moved out of the way and the spine is reached, every vertebrae is identified, and the affected vertebrae are located with the help of an x-ray image already taken before the surgery. This follows the removal of the lamina of the affected vertebrae. It is important for the surgeon to protect the spinal cord and the nerve roots. One aspect that the surgeons need to consider is that the lamina should not be completely removed, since it would lead to adversely affect the stability of the joints between the vertebrae. If this precaution is not taken, it could tilt the spine even more than it was before the surgery. So, it is always recommended to get cervical spine surgery done with implementation of all precautions and guidelines.
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