about the procedure
Once it has been determined that a person‘s back painback painNon-specific term used to describe pain below the cervical spine is being caused by a neural impingementimpingementA condition where malpositioned bones restrict movement. If these bones squeeze tendons or other soft tissues,..., more commonly referred to as a "pinched nervenerveA whitish cordlike structure composed of one or more bundles of myelinated or unmylelinated fibers, or more of..." in the back or neck, the doctor may recommend a spinal decompressiondecompressionIn relation to the spine this procedure is carried out to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots. be performed. The two most common types of spine surgerysurgeryThe branch of medicine concerned with the treatment of disease, injury, and deformity by operation or manipula... decompressions are the discectomydiscectomyOne of the most common surgical procedures for problems in the cervical spine is an anterior cervical discecto... and the lumbar laminectomylaminectomyExcision of one or more lamina of the vertebrae. Removal of the lamina, the bony element covering the posterio....
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Today, both operations have shown a high level of success at alleviating lower back pain and/or leg pain. Post-operative recovery from both operations usually causes minimal discomfort for the patient, although certain precautions need to be taken to minimize the incidence of injury.
In some cases, a spinal fusion operation is performed in conjunction with the decompression surgery in order to stabilizestabilizeTo hold securely in place. the spine.
Several conditions may cause neural impingement and necessitate these surgeries, including spinal stenosisspinal stenosisSpinal stenosis is a term commonly used to describe a narrowing of a portion of the spinal canal. Stenosis can..., a herniated discherniated discInjury to the disc may occur when neck motion puts too much pressure on the disc. One of the most painful inju..., isthmicisthmicThe lesion is in the pars interarticularis. Three types occur: lytic, fatigue fracture of the pars interarticu... or degenerativedegenerativeThe lesion results from inter-segmental instability of long duration. spondylolisthesisspondylolisthesisSpondylolisthesis is the term used to describe when one vertebra slips forward on the one below it. This usual... or, in rare instances, a spinal tumor.
read more about herniated discs
learn more about spinal stenosis
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discectomy
When a herniated disc puts pressure on a nerve rootnerve rootThe portion of a spinal nerve in close proximity to its origin from the spinal cord. an operation is performed to remove the herniated disc, thus relieving the pressure.
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laminectomy
If spinal stenosis is the main cause of a person‘s back or neck pain, then the spinal canalspinal canalThe bony channel that is formed by the intravertebral foramen of the vertebrae and in which contains the spina... must be made larger and any boneboneThe hard tissue that provides structural support to the body. It is primarily composed of hydroxyapatite cryst... spursspursA sharp, bony outgrowth located at the end of a bone. pressing on the nerves must be removed. One way that this is done is with a complete laminectomy. "Laminectomy" means "remove the laminalaminaThe flattened or arched part of the vertebral arch, forming the roof of the spinal canal. The posterior part o...." The lamina is the back side of the spinal canal and forms the roof over the spinal cordspinal cordThe spinal cord is a column of millions of nerve fibers that run through your spinal canal. It extends from th.... Removing the lamina gives more room for the nerves and lets the surgeon remove any boneboneThe hard tissue that provides structural support to the body. It is primarily composed of hydroxyapatite cryst... spurs from around the nerves. A laminectomy reduces the pressure on the spinal cord and relieves the irritation and inflammationinflammationA local response to injury due to a physical reaction (such as abrasion), or to chemical or biological agents,... of the spinal nerves.
Removing the lamina completely may cause problems with the stability of the facet joints between each vertebra. If the joints are damaged during the laminectomy, the spine may begin to tilt forward, causing problems later. One way that spine surgeons try to prevent this problem is to not actually remove the lamina. Instead, they simply cut one side of the lamina and fold it back slightly. The other side of the lamina opens like a hinge. This makes the spinal canal larger giving the spinal cord more room. The cut area of the lamina eventually heals to keep the spine from tilting forward.
