Anyone ever had lumbar spinal fusion?

[Rot 911]

Well, after finally jumping through all the prerequisite hoops, and 4 months later, we have finally ended up where my arthritis doctor thought I would be. Due to 24 years in the military and old age, I’ve got a vertebra shifting out of alignment and the disc pushing into the nerves. Met with a spinal surgeon, who has done plenty of these and seems to be on the ball. If they’re able to do minimally invasive surgery, it looks like about a three month recovery with up to one year for the complete fusion. If they’ve got to really open me up, going to be a longer recovery. So, anyone had it done and how did it go? And for those that like pictures, here is what the set up will look like.

[MBAtarga]

L4-L5 in July 2022. I have had mild low back pain since a teenager but more recently was pretty constant. Got worse when doing hard labor/landscaping/etc.

Went to a highly recommended surgeon that two different friends have used. He fixed previously performed bad surgery from a different Dr on one of the guys.
Dr told me during the consult he had 95-99% confidence he could get rid of my back pain. First week was in quite a bit of pain, but actually went back to tele-work on my 3rd day home. Had major pain for the first month or so, went to PT but had a setback with a side muscle cramp that was an 11 on a 1-10 scale. Once I actually cried for about 10 minutes at PT when it re-occurred by me just trying to lay down on the table to start PT. Dr office kept ignoring my pleas of help for the pain. Chiropractor I had been seeing more than 25 years suggested a Trigger Point Injection for the side muscle cramp. I got the surgeon to refer me to Pain Mgt - and about 2 weeks later was able to get the TPI. Within 4 days that side muscle ache was gone. I was able to restart PT a few weeks later - primarily to regain movement/motion.

I still have the mild lower back pain - primarily when standing on hard floor. Sitting down or laying I get 99% relief. I guess overall it did improve my situation as I don't wake up with the pain like I did previously. Would I do it over? Nope.

[Halm]

L3-4-5 fusion in February, 2022. Posterior approach. I was 73 at the time of the surgery. Never heard of a minimally invasive procedure. The anterior approach is not the normal procedure unless there is a specific approach.

I was in the hospital for 8 days. There was an extra day due to my reaction to anesthesia. Started home PT with in 3-4 days. That made all the difference in my recovery. Was off the Oxy within 10 days.

Major physical mobility returned pretty quick, in big chunks. By 6 months I was able to do anything (within reason) I wanted. Was declared healed by late September.

My best advice it this: Do not let an orthopedic surgeon touch your spine. Find an experienced neurosurgeon.

Feel free to PM me with any specific questions.

[Rot 911]

Mark, sorry to hear things did not work out so well for you. I’m hoping it goes better for me. Halm, The guy doing mine is a neurosurgeon and specializes in this type of procedure.

[Halm]

Excellent, Kurt. Keep us posted as things progress.

[stevej37]

My surgeon gave me the choice of that or the balloon kyphoplasty surgery.

I opted for the latter because of the much faster recovery time. It will be two years since in a short while and I would guess I'm about at the 95% recovery point.

Todays surgery procedures are incredibly effective.

[wdfifteen]

I'll be watching this thread closely.

My doc is saying I might need L4-L5 fusion.

Did you go through the steroid epidural routine? If they hit the nerve right they say there is a 50-60% chance of success at relieving pain. They are very vague about how "success" is defined.
If no success, they are recommending the fusion.

This thread covers my experiences so far with back pain relief.

Drug addict or invalid?

[Jeff Higgins]

I'm a candidate, and have been for almost 30 years. L3-L4, and one above that in the "S" range (can't remember which one). The surgeons and doctors advising me tell me to hold out as long as I can, hence the 30 year "candidacy".

The problem, they tell me, is that once one is fused it will place more strain on the ones above and below it. As a mechanical engineer by training, they had no trouble explaining to me the dynamics of all of this. They told me that, eventually, it is pretty typical that the ones above and below fail under this added strain (and somewhat off angle from what they are designed to see). Eventually, then, the ones above and below might need to be fused as well.

My response was that eventually my flexible spine will be replaced by a piece or REBAR. Their answer has been "hopefully you don't live that long".

So, hoping to avoid all of that as long as possible, I have turned to a very strict regime of exercise and periodic massage and visits to the chiropractor. That, and a very heightened awareness of when I am over doing, or have over done. It's a constant level of vigilance that maybe some aren't up to, but it has worked for me.

Granted, I have really bad days sometimes. Days I cannot get out of bed. Fortunately, at this point in my life, I can afford the luxury of chilling on those days. Maybe not for everyone, but I'm kind of in fear of starting down the fusion path. I'll hold out as long as I can.

[LWJ]

Here is what I know. A buddy runs a work comp fund. He has a crap neck. My back is a mess.

He said after buying many millions of dollars of back surgeries “33% of the time it helps. 33% it makes pain worse. And 33% no change.”

Take away- be very hesitant on back surgery. Also. Spent last week with BIL who is a super hotshot surgeon. He has a crap back. He agreed with the above stats and won’t get surgery unless he is crippled from pain.

Good luck y’all.

[Halm]

As per other posts, yes, I went through the spinal steroid injections. They were no help. OTOH, my surgery is a total success. No more back pain. I have returned to full activity. This includes active bike riding, averaging 15-22 miles per day. At the same time, I started a 1200 calorie diet. Over the last 5 months I have lost better than 50 pounds. Have not felt this good in decades.

[NY65912]

3 years ago I had 3 level anterior cervical dissection and fusion. 4" plate with 8 screws. After 6 months I didn't even it happened. I wish they had fused my L3-4 L4-5 laminectomy many years ago as I sufferer from failed back syndrome.

Wishing you all luck!

[oldE]

My wife just got back from Victoria where her best friend had major surgery to her lower back. Our friend's back has been deteriorating over the past few years. A procedure last winter opened passages for the nerves to her lower legs, but osteoporosis had made her condition worse. She started allondrinate (sp?) to stop or slow bone density loss and had her operation on the 6th. She was released on the 8th, as she was mobile. My wife says the scar was 7.25 inches long. There are 9 screws and a rod in there. The doctor says they worked on 5 vertebrae. Within a week, feeling was returning to her feet. 12 days after surgery she was walking 2 kilometers a day. (Pushed herself to 3 one day but regretted it).
This lady is tall and used to run half marathons. 10 k walks each day were her thing. I am confident she will get back to that level. The surgeon was amazing.

Good luck.
Best
Les

[Googam]

Spine fusion expert. Have had upper fusion C 3, 4 & 5, 4 rods 8 screws. Lower fusion L 3, 4 & 5, 4 rods 8 screws. These 3 disk segments are almost always the culprits. Fusions worked fine, but I had severe pinched nerve damage from the upper disk compression so my right leg still aches. Recovery sucks & it's hard to get comfortable. Takes about 4-6 weeks to settle down. Yes....see a neurologist, not a spine guy. Lots of nerve activity going on in there. The lower back surgery was an easier recovery. The neck one was tough.

[Rot 911]

Now I’m almost wishing I didn’t ask! My doctor is a neurologist, and seems to be pretty conservative about recommendations. He thinks I’m at the point that I’m better off with the surgery then without. And the way I feel, right now I have to agree with him. He has me on some nerve blocking medicine that has me functional, but I can’t stay on it forever, and in the meantime, the vertebra and disk just keeps deteriorating. My surgery is not scheduled until December 7, so it gives me some time to think. Or maybe it’s giving me too much time to think.

[Arizona_928]

I just got done with a post and anterior fusion in the lumbar region over the summer. It sucks. The front side adds a complexity to the pain and recovery. For myself, the pain was manageable the second day post op without pain meds, but my surgeon was very respectful towards my well being and would have allowed as much as i needed (including hydromorphone pushes)... which was nice, as my first surgeon was an absolute cuckold and refused post op meds and sent me home the same afternoon.

Recovery is tricky. My surgeon said 3 months to 80% then 2 years to full recovery. I'm believing the latter for myself. I can pm the name of the surgeon that did mine, if you're interested in a second opinion or even a great first option. The general surgeon was highly impressed with his work, and so have I... My surgery was for a revision from a botched job by an incompetent chuckle head in az. I had a lot of neurosurgeons flat out say no thanks (that i suspect due to complexity)....

[Rot 911]

AZ928 I think I’m fairly lucky as my surgery is considered “run-of-the-mill” surgery by neurosurgeons. That meaning things are not so screwed up that it can’t be easily fixed now. I did a bit of research before I settled on this neurosurgeon. Hopefully my surgery goes as planned. And mine is going in through the back.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Googam

Holy Crap!! Ripping that bandage off must have really hurt!

[matthewb0051]

Go look up football great Earl Campbell's spinal issues, surgery, and pain killer abuse. I saw a show about him and after surgery he was a wreck, screws were killing him and causing more pain. I believe he is better now but suffered quite a bit for a long time.

[Rot 911]

Originally Posted by matthewb0051

Go look up football great Earl Campbell's spinal issues, surgery, and pain killer abuse. I saw a show about him and after surgery he was a wreck, screws were killing him and causing more pain. I believe he is better now but suffered quite a bit for a long time.

I’ve been doing my own research through some of the medical digests. I’m starting to conclude that even neurosurgeons are hammers in search of a nail. Never once was non-surgical treatment suggested other than the short term physical therapy hoop I had to jump through to get to the surgeon.

Right now I am taking gabapentin three times a day and I would say it gives me 90% relief of my symptoms. There are no long-term side effects of taking the gabapentin. I’m starting to think maybe I should prescribe my own non-surgical treatment based on what I’ve been reading and see how I do.

[Jeff Hail]

Keep moving.