Failed back surgery or failed neck surgery is unfortunately an increasingly common syndrome among patients who have undergone treatment to correct a spine condition. A failed surgery typically arises when traditional, invasive surgical approaches were used, but innovative and less invasive surgical options, such as a minimally invasive procedure, would have been a better fit for the patient. When prior surgery fails to produce the results needed to relieve pain or worsens the overall condition and function of the spine, the condition has most likely been inaccurately diagnosed and treated. Luckily, our doctors specialize in “revision” surgery to fix failed surgeries.
HOW DO I KNOW IF MY SURGERY HAS FAILED?
Failed neck or back treatment may stem from an incorrect diagnosis of a common spine condition, and the most commonly misdiagnosed spine conditions include herniated discs, disc degeneration, sciatica, pinched spinal nerves, scoliosis or other spinal curvature issues, compression fractures from osteoporosis, accidental fractures or traumatic issues.
The most commonly failed surgeries as results of a misdiagnosis of the above conditions are failed cervical fusion, failed lumbar laminectomy, and failed lumbar discectomy. These procedures include surgeries on the neck (cervical), middle (thoracic) or lower (lumbar) areas of the spine.
Symptoms of a failed back or neck surgery can include partially relieved pain or worsened pain after initial post-surgery healing. Your pain may be a dull ache or sharp, stabbing sensation. If spinal range of motion has altered after surgical recovery, making your spine less mobile, or at the other extreme, too unpredictable mobile or unstable, you are likely suffering from a failed spine surgery.
Beyond inaccurate diagnosis, failed back or neck surgery may result from a doctor’s one-size-fits-all treatment approach, surgical accidents, or inexperience. To correct the effects of failed spinal surgery, patients should seek a new diagnosis or second opinion.
WHAT IS THE RIGHT TREATMENT FOR ME?
A spinal fusion, which is performed based on degenerative disc-related conditions, is one of the most commonly failed procedures nation-wide, as well as in our own offices. When a fusion fails, it results in the areas surrounding the fused spine segments to begin prematurely wearing down, creating an influx of pain, and additional conditions. Our doctors are experts in performing artificial disc replacement, a minimally invasive treatment solution to a failed fusion.
Another common failed surgery we see is a failed lumbar laminectomy to treat spinal stenosis or foraminal stenosis. This issue typically occurs if the technique used to perform the procedure was outdated or too advanced for an inexperienced surgeon to successfully perform. Our surgeons have promulgated a special surgical technique to perform a minimally invasive surgery called a laminoforaminotomy to fix the reoccurring problem.