Finding Relief for Chronic Back Pain with Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

It’s thought that virtually everyone, 80% of the population, suffers from back pain at some point in their lives. About a quarter of adults in the United States experience back pain at any given time. 

Fortunately for many, back pain is temporary, clearing up on its own or with treatment. However, the unlucky few who develop chronic back pain feel the impact of their condition daily. 

At 360 Orthopedics in Sarasota, Venice, and Lakewood Ranch, Florida, our specialists help those with chronic back pain from conservative treatments to surgical solutions, providing the level of care that’s right for your condition. 

Chronic back pain

When you’ve had persistent pain lasting longer than 12 weeks, doctors consider your condition to be chronic. Whether you have persistent dull, aching pain or sharp, burning, or electric shock pain, chronic back pain can be debilitating. 

Some of the common causes of chronic back pain include: 

• Arthritis of the spine
• Bulging or herniated discs
• Osteoporosis
• Repetitive strain and overuse
• Spinal stenosis

Lifestyle factors such as obesity and smoking can raise your risk factor for chronic back problems. 

Minimally invasive spine surgery for chronic back pain

One of the most powerful improvements in contemporary surgery is the development of minimally invasive procedures and techniques. Using advances in digital imaging and tiny incisions, we can now see inside the spine and perform repairs without cutting through thick back muscles to visualize the surgical field. 

Not only does this make your recovery much faster, but you experience less surgery-related pain, and your risk of postsurgical infection falls dramatically. Smaller incisions mean less blood loss, too. 

Gone are the days of frequent failed back surgeries. Since the adoption of minimally invasive techniques, the success rates for spinal surgeries have improved and stabilized. 

While not all spine surgeries can be performed using minimally invasive techniques, procedures are being added and refined frequently. 

Some of the back surgeries that benefit from a minimally invasive approach include: 

• Decompression (microdiscectomy): procedures that relieve pressure on nerve tissue caused by herniated discs or narrowing of nerve passageways (spinal stenosis)
• Interspinous spacer insertion: a device placed to restore normal vertebral spacing
• Kyphoplasty: restores the dimensions of vertebrae that suffer from compression fractures
• Laminectomy: removal of a portion of a vertebra to create more space and relieve pressure
• Minimally invasive fusion: painful vertebrae are permanently fused to treat pain
• Percutaneous pedicle screw fixation: medical hardware to stabilize the spine, inserted through the skin

Minimally invasive spine surgeries are a rapidly expanding field in orthopedics, enjoying strong patient demand for improved recovery and outcomes.

Contact 360 Orthopedics by calling 941-360-2233 to schedule a consultation at any of our three locations. There’s no reason to live with chronic back pain, so book your visit today.