Pittsburgh Spines has a welcoming environment. Our exam rooms are bright and set up for friends or family to accompany you if need. Every patient will have ample time with Dr. Bookwalter himself to ask questions and receive detailed answers.
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An artificial cervical disc is a device inserted between two vertebrae in the neck to replace a damaged disc. It is best used for patients who are suffering from a herniated disc without much narrowing of the spine.
Learn how you can begin to recover from an artificial disk replacement in less than 4 hours with Dr. Bookwalter.
Though motion preservation is very important, there are times when cervical fusion is appropriate. One example is a during Laminectomy which removes a section of bone from the rear of one or more vertebrae to relieve the painful and disabling pressure of stenosis.
A herniated disc is a common injury that can affect any part of the spine. A herniated disc can cause severe pain and other problems in the arms or legs.
Discectomy is surgery to remove lumbar (low back) herniated disc material that is pressing on a nerve root or the spinal cord . It tends to be done as microdiscectomy, which uses a special microscope to view the disc and nerves.
Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the open spaces within your spine. To the right you can see a healthy spine with lots of room for the spinal cord. When that room is filled in by calcium buildup and other factors the space around the spinal cord begins to close up. The buildup begins to put pressure on your spinal cord and the nerves that travel through the spine to your arms and legs. Spinal stenosis occurs most often in the lower back and the neck. Pain, tingling, numbness, muscle weakness, and problems with normal bladder or bowel function are all signs of Spinal Stenosis.
This surgery removes bone and/or portions of a herniated or diseased disc to relieve neck and radiating arm pain caused by parts of the disc pressing on nerve roots.
I am unique in using the lateral position for these procedures. This allows accurate localization and diminished soft tissue dissection. Generally this helps reduce the amount of postoperative discomfort patients experience.
