Lumbar Fusion
Over time areas in your spine can degenerate due to heredity, over use, injury, and arthritis. Symptoms are weakness, numbness, and pain that interrupt your daily activities. Your vertebrae usually move separately and are cushioned by disks. Degeneration is when the vertebrae are moving too much and are squeezing nerves. Fusion is locking together of two or more vertebrae. Bone grafts are used as the glue can come from either your own body (pelvic bone) or cadaver bones from a bone bank. Fusion approach can be from the front (anterior) or back (posterior). Recovery time is approximately 12 weeks.
Over time areas in your spine can degenerate due to heredity, over use, injury, and arthritis. Symptoms are weakness, numbness, and pain that interrupt your daily activities. Your vertebrae usually move separately and are cushioned by disks. Degeneration is when the vertebrae are moving too much and are squeezing nerves. Fusion is locking together of two or more vertebrae. Bone grafts are used as the glue can come from either your own body (pelvic bone) or cadaver bones from a bone bank. Fusion approach can be from the front (anterior) or back (posterior). Recovery time is approximately 12 weeks.
OPA Physicians who perform this surgery include:
Justin Esterberg, MD
Alexis Falicov, MD
Jeff Garr, MD
Kyphoplasty
Kyphoplasty is a new, minimally invasive procedure used to treat osteoporotic compression fractures of the spine. These fractures are very common in patients with osteoporosis. Osteoporosis causes weakening of the bones which leads to fractures that occur without an apparent injury. The bones collapse into a wedge shape and can lead to a round back or hunched posture. A balloon is inflated, creating a space, and then removed. The space is filled with a special bone cement that repairs the fracture. Recovery time is usually 3 weeks.
OPA Physicians who perform this surgery include:
Justin Esterberg, MD
Alexis Falicov, MD
Jeff Garr, MD
Artificial Disk Replacement
Over time areas in your spine can degenerate due to heredity, over use, injury, and arthritis. Symptoms are weakness, numbness, and pain that interrupt your daily activities. Your vertebrae usually move separately and are cushioned by disks. Degeneration is when the vertebrae are moving too much and are squeezing nerves. Disk Replacement is an alternative to Fusion. Rather than locking together two or more vertebrae, an artificial disk is inserted and is bonded to your good spine sections. Therefore disk mobility is retained for a more natural range of motion. The approach can be from the front (anterior) or back (posterior). Recovery time is approximately 6 weeks.
OPA Physicians who perform this surgery include:
Justin Esterberg, MD
Alexis Falicov, MD
Jeff Garr, MD
Microdiscetomy
Discs separate each vertebra in your back. They redistribute pressure and cushion the spine while sitting, standing or lifting. A disc can rupture or herniate due to repetitive bending, twisting or by injury. Upon rupture you can experience pain, numbness, weakness, tingling or loss of a reflex. This is due to nerves being pinched. During surgery part of the impacted vertebrae, called lamina, is shaved to create more space between the disks and more room for the nerves. Any extra loose fragments are removed. Recovery time is usually 2 weeks.
OPA Physicians who perform this surgery include:
Justin Esterberg, MD
Alexis Falicov, MD
Jeff Garr, MD
Laminotomy and Laminectomy
A damaged disc or abnormal bone growth, bone spur, can pinch a nerve in your spine causing pain, burning, tingling, and numbness. If you have pressure on a nerve that connects to the sciatic nerve, the pain may shoot down your leg. During a Laminotomy part of the vertebrae, the lamina, and part of the disc is removed both above and below the nerve. In a Laminectomy just a piece of the vertebrae and any bone spurs are removed. In both cases more room is created for the nerve and your pain in relieved. Recovery time is approximately 4 weeks.
OPA Physicians who perform this surgery include:
Justin Esterberg, MD
Alexis Falicov, MD
Jeff Garr, MD
Scoliosis
Scoliosis is when your spine curves and twists instead of growing straight. Scoliosis is inherited and usually occurs in girls in their early teens, but boys can have it too. There are three types of scoliosis: congenital, neurologic, and degenerative. Symptoms are one shoulder higher than the other, a shoulder blade sticking out, or uneven waistline. Treatment can be both non surgical and surgical. Recovery times vary due to type and amount of spine effected.
OPA Physicians who perform this surgery include:
Justin Esterberg, MD
Alexis Falicov, M.D.
Jeff L. Garr, M.D.