corpectomy

moving me forward™

Your movement may be limited, but your options don't have to be. See how other patients conquered their pain and get started on your own journey to recovery.

Mike "Coach K" Krzyzewski
Inspirational college coach and DePuy joint recipient.

watch a spine pep-talk from Coach Kread Coach K's story

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"It's not worth living with pain."

http://prod.neverst.depuy.edgesuite.net/patients/media/depuy-spine.mp4
http://prod.neverst.depuy.edgesuite.net/patients/media/depuy-spine.mp4
"It's not worth living with pain."

patient journeys: Back and Neck

Isabelle’s Journey

Isabelle’s Journey

How bracing myself for a test, lead to my brace being removed.

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read Coach K's story

"Hi, I'm Mike Krzyzewski, coach of Duke University's Men's Basketball team. If you could take a journey to move better, live better, why wouldn't you? I did when I had joint replacement surgery.

"I'm here to tell you that you have two opponents. Pain and lack of mobility. Pain can get you down every day. Lack of mobility can lead to decreased speed and loss of endurance. With speed and endurance loss, you don't stay competitive and you spend energy just trying to catch up. But you've got to fight your opponents to stay in the game.

"I know it isn't always easy. There was a part of me that thought of stopping, giving up coaching altogether. I would never have won two Olympic team medals and four NCAA Championships if I hadn't had my surgeries.

"Now, I don't have to overcompensate for injury and pain. I'm more active than before, I have relief from pain and I'm even quicker on my feet. People say I look better now. Do you want your life back the way it should be? You have two choices, a continued downward spiral or take action.

"So don't let the injury win. You don't need to live in pain. That's why I want to encourage you to empower yourself. Get educated, develop a personal treatment plan with your doctor, build a team of support and commit to reclaiming your life. Remember, this is a major event in your life—treat it as such. What you put into it will multiply for you at the end of the journey."
 

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Back and Neck

Post Surgery

This document will help you learn more about care and rehabilitation immediately after surgery:

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Surgical After Care

Learn about after care for spinal surgery including

  • what to expect the first few days following surgery
  • what the various medical staff will be looking for in your progress
  • what considerations will be made with your diet, medication, and activities
  • what special instructions should be considered

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Rehabilitation

Learn about spinal rehabilitation including

  • what happens on your first visit to a physical therapist
  • what treatments are used to control pain and symptoms
  • how exercise helps you recover
  • how therapy can train you to do your activities safely

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about the procedure

Another method for relieving pressure on the spinal cordspinal cordThe spinal cord is a column of millions of nerve fibers that run through your spinal canal. It extends from th... that may be causing spinal stenosisspinal stenosisSpinal stenosis is a term commonly used to describe a narrowing of a portion of the spinal canal. Stenosis can... or cervical myelopathymyelopathyAny functional or pathologic disturbance in the spinal cord. is to remove the front of the spinal canalspinal canalThe bony channel that is formed by the intravertebral foramen of the vertebrae and in which contains the spina.... This means that the large part of several of the vertebraevertebraeThe individual bones of the spine are the vertebrae. These are the building blocks of the spinal column. The v... must be removed—the vertebral bodies and the discs between. This procedure is called a corpectomycorpectomyPerhaps a more popular procedure for removing the pressure on the spinal cord causing spinal stenosis and cerv.... "Corpus" means body and "ectomy" means remove.

Once the vertebral bodies have been removed, the space must be filled with something to provide support to the front of the spine. Just as in an anterior cervical fusion, this space is usually filled with a bone graftbone graftA basic component of any spinal fusion is the bone graft. Bone grafting is used for many types of orthopedic p... from the patient‘s hip or the boneboneThe hard tissue that provides structural support to the body. It is primarily composed of hydroxyapatite cryst... bank. Some type of internal fixationinternal fixationThe immobilization of bone fragments or joints with implants in order to promote healing or fusion., such as a metal plate and screws, is usually required to hold the vertebrae and the bone graftbone graftGround up bone tissue transplanted from one side to another, often used for filling holes. in place in order to increase the stability of the spine until the fusion of the bones takes hold.

understanding back and neck anatomy

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lumbar (lower back) fusion

To view the animation click here

cervical spine (neck) fusion

To view the animation click here

minimally invasive tlif

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mis lateral fusion

To view the animation click here
May 15 2012 - 19:17:49