Who benefits most from spinal fusion, you or your surgeon? According to a recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Association, it may not be you. JAMA reports that a surgeon gets $600 to $800 for a particular operation, called a decompression, for spinal stenosis, the cause of lower back pain in many older people. As JAMA reports, the operation usually works quite well, yet many surgeons prefer to do a far more complicated and lucrative procedure involving spinal fusion. The more complicated operation, the New York Times reports, has three times the risk of life-threatening complications. Despite that, its use has increased fifteen-fold from 2002 to 2007among patients covered by Medicare. The popularity of the procedure may, JAMA suggests, have something to do with price: surgeons are paid up to ten times as much for complex fusion procedures as they are for decompression surgery. JAMA also reports that in 2007, Consumer Reports rated spinal surgery as number 1 on its list of overused
tests and treatments. Watch your back.
Read more from the Journal of the American Medical Association
heard this once before…wow.. so much for the oath to do no harm…thanks
What’s new? Money is the real reason many unnecessary (?) procedures are performed, money is the real reason many unnecessary drugs are prescribed.
Thr fact that there are so many more fellowship trained orthopedic back surgeons who learn these procedures might have something to do with the operations they do. Give someone a hammer and everything looks like a nail. I’m not sure it is all greed. Also if you talk to orthopedic surgeons who don’t do complicated back surgery, you’ll find very few of them have scars on their back. I know I had sciatic pain for 6 months and let it heal the conservative way. Understand that there are definite indications for surgery, but before 1925 or so no back surgery for disc problems had ever been done. 90% of acute disc problems will heal on their own.
I guess I am one of exceptions that has excellent results from a fusion (L4-L5). After reaching the point of 24/7 pain I opted for this procedure. This was over 20 years ago. I have had NO pain since and no limitation on any athletic activity.
Zoro it could be that it healed itself with or without the fusion. This is a dangerous operation, and is often done when it was not necessary,and it’s difficult to get all the options from the doctor. We’re talking 80,90 thousand dollars here, vrs,a few hundred,and you don’t see to many poor back surgeons. It should require mandatory other opinions, they can also keep a patient over medicated knowing this is not quality life,and most families can’t tolerate this very long, they can work you like a placebo right into the operating room
Right on ZORO I had L3-L4-L5 fused in 1972 went back to work in 1973 operated large machines until 2004 never any problem just uncle arthur is setting in now that I’m 70 years young. When a disc is remove they have to put someting in to replace it or it doesn’t work.
I agree. However, as my wife found out, if you opt out of surgery the doctor will write up your medical report so that you never get insurance on your back. These doctors are becoming criminals. By the way, my wife is free and clear of back pain and has been since one year after her problem. She is also playing golf and doing all the things the doctors told her she would never do again ever with the spinal fusion.
I bypassed the surgeons for chiropractic treatment. I feel I made the right decision as I have a brother and close friend who had fusion done. I had sciatic nerve problems that were solved in three weeks of treatment for less than $1000. My brother and friend are still having issues and have already paid out thousands for treatment and surgery. I got second and third opinions.
Always wanted to use the knife. Trust me there is a better way.
Was told by my doctor “You have two choices, go home and learn to live with the pain or let me fix you.” With my pain being a constant 9/10 you all can guess what I picked. I had the fusion and regret it. Have had 5 more surgeries in a year. One because the first doctor put a screw in that was too big and caused a pedical to break.(he won’t admit it) The theads of the screw rubbed the nerve and I now have weakness, burning and numbess forever in my legs and feet. And guess what? Still have the original pain. I am in worse shape than I was before the fusion. Wished I could have found a better way. Saw many doctors and had way to may injections before I had the fusion. It’s sad but I don’t believe that there are many doctors that really care about the patients it is about the dollar!
Wished I hadn’t!!! Had cervical disc fusion in 1991. C3-4,4-5,5-6. Foolishly, the doctor recommended it and I went along. After 2yrs of complaining of returning pain, I finally went to another nuerosurgeon who told me(Hell, I could see it in the x-rays I hand carried to him) that 5-6 had failed. He wanted to re-fuse 5-6 AND…because of stress on above and below discs, fuse them also, then put metal to reinforce it. NO thanks! Same for the suggested surgery to fuse L-4-5,5-S-1. Said I be paralized if I didn’t have it done(I was having L-foot drop). Again, refused. Foot-drop corrected itself w/i 2-mo’s. Yes, I have pain, and limitations, but…..better the devil I know than….WHO KNOW’S!!!