In the vast majority of patients, spine surgery is only considered after a long course of conservative therapy. Back pain often takes quite some time to resolve. Therefore, rushing into spine surgery may not be the best idea. Most commonly, doctors will advise at least 3 to 6 months of conservative treatment before considering spine surgery.

Discectomy

A discectomy is a procedure to remove a portion of the disc that rests between each vertebrae. A herniated disc is the most common reason for spine surgery. In this type of spine surgery, the herniated disc is removed and relieve the pressure on the nerves.

Spine Fusion

A spine fusion is surgery that is done to eliminate motion between adjacent vertebrae. The spine fusion may be done because to treat a problem such as spondylolisthesis (unstable spine), or it may be done because of the extent of other surgery (such as a laminectomy).

Spinal Disc Replacement

Spinal disc replacement is a new surgery that is still quite uncommon. Spine disc replacement is done to treat specific types of back pain, while avoiding the problems associated with spine fusion surgery.





	Who is most likely to develop low back pain? Nearly everyone has low back pain sometime. Men and women are equally affected. It occurs most often between ages 30 and 50, due in part to the aging process but also as a result of sedentary life styles with too little (sometimes punctuated by too much) exercise. The risk of experiencing low back pain from disc disease or spinal degeneration increases with age.

	BACK PAIN STATISTICS Low back pain is the most prevalent cause of disability in people under age 45, and of the $27 billion spent on all musculoskeletal trauma $16 billion is spent in the management of low back pain, more than half of that $16 billion being spent on surgical treatment. Approximately 60 to 80 percent of adults in the U.S. experience low back pain at some point in their lives. Most cases of low back pain are considered acute, or temporary, but some people suffer from chronic, or ongoing, back pain.

	Can depression lead to chronic back pain?

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