Discectomy Surgery Tourism to India

What is Discectomy?

Disk removal is one of the most common types of back surgery. Diskectomy (also called discectomy) is the removal of an intervertebral disk, the flexible plate that connects any two adjacent vertebrae in the spine. Intervertebral disks act as shock absorbers, protecting the brain and spinal cord from the impact produced by the body's movements.

Purpose of Discectomy Surgery?

Removing the invertebral disk is performed after completion of unsuccessful conservative treatment for back pain that has been present for at least six weeks. Surgery is also performed if there is pressure on the lumbosacral nerve roots that causes weakness, bowel dysfunction, or bladder dysfunction.

As a person ages, the disks between vertebrae degenerate and dry out, and tears form in the fibers holding them in place. Eventually, the disk can develop a blister-like bulge, compressing nerves in the spine and causing pain. This is called a "prolapsed" (or herniated) disk. If such a disk presses on a nerve root and causes muscle weakness, or problems with the bladder or bowel, immediate disk removal surgery may be needed.

The goal of the surgery is to relieve all pressure on nerve roots by removing the pulpy material from the disk, or the entire disk. If it is necessary to remove material from several nearby vertebrae, the spine may become unsteady. In this case, the surgeon will perform a Spinal Fusion, removing all disks between two or more vertebrae, and roughening the bones so that the vertebrae heal together. Bone strips taken from the patient's leg or hip may be used to help hold the vertebrae together. Spinal fusion decreases pain, but decreases spinal mobility.
Description of Discectomy surgery:

The surgery is performed under general anesthesia The surgeon cuts an opening into the vertebral canal, and moves the dura and the bundle of nerves called the "cauda equina" (horse's tail) aside, which exposes the disk. If a portion of the disk has moved out from between the vertebrae and into the nerve canal, it is simply removed. If the disk itself has become fragmented and partially displaced, or is not fragmented but bulges extensively, the surgeon removes the damaged part of the disk and the part that lies in the space between the vertebrae.

There are minimally invasive surgical techniques for disk removal, including microdiskectomy. In this procedure, the surgeon uses a magnifying instrument or special microscope to view the disk. Magnification makes it possible to remove a herniated disk with a smaller incision, causing less damage to nearby tissue. Video-assisted arthroscopic microdiskectomy has exhibited good results with less use of narcotics and a shortened period of disability. Newer forms of discectomy are still in the research stage, and are not yet widely available. These include laser discectomy and automated percutaneous discectomy.

Risks assosiated with Discectomy surger:

Discectomy and microdiscectomy are generally well-tolerated and do not commonly cause complications. However, there is a slight risk of damaging the nerve roots or spinal structures during surgery. There is also some risk of infection following surgery, which may cause further damage. An infection may require high doses of antibiotics and additional surgery to control.
All surgery involves some risk. Also, because there are risks with general anesthesia, your doctor and medical staff will carefully monitor you during your surgery and recovery.

What is the out come of Discectomy surgery:

People with prolonged symptoms that are severe enough to interfere with normal activities and work and require strong pain medications may gain significant relief from surgery. A 2001 study reports that surgery results in the greatest improvement for people with moderate or severe sciatica caused by lower (lumbar) back disc herniation. Of 402 people included in this 5-year outcome study, 70% of those who had had surgery reported improvement in their most important symptom, as compared with 56% of those who received nonsurgical treatment.2 People with milder symptoms tend to do well without surgery

Discectomy Surgery in India-Huge Cost Savings:

Spine care has become a specialty in India. They combine the latest innovations in medical electronics with unmatched expertise in leading neuro-surgeons and spine surgeons in India. These centers have the distinction of providing comprehensive spine care spanning from basic facilities in preventive back-care to the most sophisticated curative technology. The technology is contemporary and world class and the volumes handled match global benchmarks. They also specialize in offering surgery to high risk patients with the introduction of innovative techniques like minimally invasive and robotic surgery.

Renowned Indian hospital is equipped to handle all phases of spine problems from the elementary to the latest clinical procedures disk replacements and radiological management of spine tumors. Their success rate at an average of 98.50% is at par with leading cardiac centers around the world.

Back Pain - Dorn Spinal Therapy, a Revolutionary Treatment for an Old Problem

85% of people suffer from some kind of back pain, with numbers rising every year. Australians spend a staggering $9 billion/year for back pain related costs - treatments, medication, loss of productivity etc. I used to be one of them, not here in Australia, but in Germany where the problem is similar. Until I found out about a German farmer who had developed a technique called Dorn Spinal Therapy.

Having studied Natural Therapies in Germany of course I was open to alternative approaches to treat back pain. Although I must say I didn't really think of having the pain treated as it just lived with me. It wasn't anything really really bad, I just couldn't stand or walk comfortably for prolonged periods of time. And I didn't give it much attention as I knew so many other people with back problems not finding any relieve.

And just because back pain is so common many people tend to believe it is normal to have it, to live with it. Back pain is not normal, it is your body's cry for help!

Then a friend told me about this new treatment that she had experienced and with her history of back pain, being excited about a treatment must be something worthwhile taking a closer look at.
The workshop I attended showed me an easy to learn and to apply way to approach and resolve back pain, neck pain and headaches. Although I felt a bit sore and stiff after the weekend workshop it took only 3 days before I realised that my pain had gone and that I now could stand and walk without feeling my lower back aching. It took a while to sink in but I knew this was a treatment I definitely wanted to make my main focus in my work.

Back pain, particularly lower back pain, is often related to a difference in leg length. Many people have some kind of leg length difference without knowing about it or they get their shoes built up or simply inlays to balance the difference. But instead of a mechanical solution Dorn Spinal Therapy uses a manual approach by bringing the joints back into their optimal position, reconnecting them, and by doing so regulating the leg length difference. The idea behind this approach is that due to what ever we do, exercises, walking in a funny way, sitting with crossed legs, sitting in soft chairs or in cars for prolonged periods of time, the joints become "unconnected". This movement in the joints then creates a little gap in the joint which ultimately leads to different long legs. Reconnecting the joints of the longer leg with easy exercises helps in most cases, where the difference is not due to a measured bone length difference.

What happens when you walk on different long legs? The longer leg pushes against the hip and the hip consequently moves either forward, backward or up which creates an instability in the entire hip area and therefor an unstable base for the spine. This instability will lead to lower or upper back pain, even to neck pain and/or headache.

When I heard all this it made my head spin but eventually I understood the concept behind it - and found it quite simple. Just as simple as working with the technique for the leg length balancing which anyone can do. And sometimes it might just be that little movement that helps relieving back pain.

When the legs are balanced the hip sometimes will balance itself out as well. But if not there is a simple way for the practitioner to do so. And then of course there is the spine itself and the individual vertebrae that need attention. And when I felt my course buddy working along my spine I couldn't believe how many spots there were where my vertebrae were not exactly in the position they should be in - all contributing to my general back problem. Every time I felt such a sore spot, I was asked to swing my opposite leg or arm whilst my buddy massaged this deviated vertebra back into alignment. He explained me that the movement relaxes and distracts the muscles and the spine and that then it is much easier for the deviated vertebra to make its way back into the right spot. And that it could not move too far as the muscles on the opposite side were working with the movement and therefor presented a natural barrier. Seemed very logical and nearly too easy to be true. But again - reality proved the technique right and that is what in the end counts: losing pain, the easier the better.

The last part was the neck, no major problem in my case, but in many people it is a big problem and again, Dorn Spinal Therapy offers a simple and very effective approach as I could learn later in many many life cases in my own clinic.

The alignment procedure finished, we finally got to the relaxing part of the treatment which is the Breuss massage. A spinal stretch massage after the famous Dr. Breuss to nourish and relax the spine and support the manual work that had been done prior. Very nice, very relaxing and it takes off the memory of the fact that there might have been a few sore moments during the alignment treatment.

Dieter Dorn, the founder of Dorn Spinal Therapy is a very simple man and found this technique by accident when he himself suffered from a terrible back. But he didn't leave it there, he was curious enough to go ahead and find out how it worked to spread the word and make it available to more and more people, practitioners as well as non practitioners. But as successful as the treatment may be, it still is the individual that has to look after their body, take responsibility for their own wellbeing. A good posture, healthy diet, enough water, good night sleeps, exercise and emotional balance are just as important in treating back problems as the actual treatment itself. Dorn Spinal Therapy includes a number of easy to do exercises, which support the work a practitioner has done and hands back responsibility to the client. In the end we cannot fix anyone who does not take on their own part in the getting better process.

Today Dorn Spinal Therapy is available in more and more countries around the world and therefore more and more clients can benefit from it. In Australia there are around 100 practitioners but this is only the start of a big change in addressing back and neck pain treatment. For more information on treatments and trainings please go to http://www.dornspinaltherapy.com

Spinal Decompression Treatment Machine Or Inversion Therapy Tables

Spinal decompression treatment consists of several techniques. All treatment techniques utilize several methods and different equipments are used to decompress the spine, increase space between the vertebrae to allow enough blood and oxygen to get through continuously and to reduce the tension and pressure on the spine and disc. Spinal decompression is recommended to people suffering from sever back pain, nerve pain and all other spine and disc diseases which can be degenerative in nature or due to postural dysfunction.

Spine decompression techniques include the latest methods of using spinal decompression machine and inversion tables. The question would be: Which one would be the most effective method of treatment? And which one will you choose?

Using a spinal decompression machine like the DRX9000 can be the most accurate method of decompressing spine because the machine itself is computerized and could estimate the amount of traction needed to guarantee the best results. The treatment is called as spine decompression therapy. It is popular just like inversion therapy which utilizes an inversion table. An inversion table is used in inversion therapy which is also a method of treating spine decompression through inversion. Inversion or hanging upside down using the inversion table provides a certain amount of traction to the spine allowing it decompress. They are both great options for the treatment of spinal compressions however each one has its own disadvantages as well. Spinal decompression therapy and the machine used are very expensive. If you can get a 300 dollar inversion table, you will have to spend hundreds and thousands of dollars for DRX9000 or any other spinal decompression machine made. Of course, such a great computerized machine will surely cost much. An inversion table is cheaper but it is not computerized so it cannot determine the amount of pull that your condition need. With this, there is the risk that you might over do the traction which can be harmful and if you under do it, inversion might be less effective.

Your choice between these two will now depend on your needs and your budget. Reviews online will also help you determine which one is more effective however statements can be confusing so it will be much better to consult your doctor and ask him which therapy and therapy equipment is best for you.

Why Is Amniotic Fluid the Potential Holy Grail for Regenerative Medicine?

The goal in regenerative medicine is not simply to repair injured tissue. The human body repairs tissues, such as cartilage and tendons. But the human repair process routinely falls short, either failing completely or reaching a maximum of 70-80% strength with its repair. This may be enough to present functionality for a person. However, it often leaves cartilage defects unfilled, rotator cuff tendons weakly attached, or ACL tears unstable.

In recent years, there has been a shift with musculoskeletal injury and disease to regenerative capability. The United States put a man on the moon over 40 years ago, isn't it about time we figured out how to regenerate soft tissues? Amniotic fluid has emerged as a potential superior source of regenerative components.

In the body of an expectant mother, the amniotic membrane along with its fluid and cells acts as a biologic system whose primary function is to not only protect the fetus, but also aid in fetal growth and development. The fluid has been found to be a rich source of proteins, growth factors, and multipotent stem cells essential for fetal growth and development.

Along with these components, various proteins, cytokines, carbohydrates, phospholipids, and hyaluronic acids are present. The stem cells that are present are capable of differentiating into all three germ layers of the human body. That means they have the capability to differentiate into adipogenic (fat), osteogenic (bone), myogenic (muscle), endothelial (skin), neurogenic (nerve), and hepatic (liver) cell lines.

Research has shown than unlike embryonic stem cells, those seen in amniotic fluid do not over-replicate. That means they do not have the potential to form tumors as are seen from time to time with embryonic cells.

At this point amniotic fluid based stem cell treatments have been utilized for numerous indications. They have been helpful as a biologic dressing in a broad range of clinical applications such as a wound covering. In addition, they have been successfully utilized in spinal fusion and as a scar tissue barrier around the spinal cord.

Amniotic fluid stem cell based treatments also also show some promise for the treatment of cartilage defects, tendon and ligament tears (e.g. ACL, rotator cuff, Achilles), and osteoarthritis. Soft tissue overuse syndromes also have responded anecdotally well to treatments including plantar fasciitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, medial and lateral epicondylitis (tennis elbow).

Medicine has been waiting and hoping for an effective treatment that helps bolster the body's regenerative capacity. Amniotic fluid treatments continue to show promise as a potential holy grail.

Getting Rid of Back and Neck Pain Through Correction of Spinal Balance

Back, neck and spine pain syndromes are some of the most common conditions seen by doctors. Despite billions of dollars in research over the years, no one treatment approach has been proven to be superior to others.

Chiropractic certainly is a proven method of spine pain relief. Physical therapy, massage and acupuncture can be quite effective for many folks. But if you have had back pain, the recurrent chronic kind, you know that none of these treatment approaches works in the long run.

Applying engineering principles to spinal research might be changing all of that. You see, studying the spine from an engineering point of view allows researchers to have a better understanding of the stresses that occur in spinal ligaments and the strain placed on the muscles that support the spine. As strange as it may sound, normal spinal configuration really has never been determined. Without knowing what the normal spine is and looks like, doctors, myself included, have had a really tough time in formulating an effective and long-lasting treatment approach. That is the bad news. Finally however, there is an emerging model of the normal spine. It based on a concept called spinal balance. Spinal balance means just what it says, the components of the spine, including the pelvis, lumbar spine or lower back, the mid-back or thoracic spine and the neck and head are all aligned and in balance. Chiropractors have looked at the spine this way for years. The problem was and still is, we really didn't have a way to measure the spine and when we did see something that looked unbalanced, there was not much we could do about it. Despite what chiropractors have claimed over the years, very few could actually show structural changes in a patient's spine after treatment.

Sure patients felt better after chiropractic treatment, but rarely did they look any differently. The pain would go away but the structure seldom would change. Typically because the structure or balance of the spine was rarely truly corrected after a chiropractic treatment, more often than not, the pain soon returned. This failure to actually correct the basic problem causing the spine pain, then either lead to more chiropractic visits or a trip to the physical therapist's office. The physical therapist would look at the patient, recognize that something wasn't quite right and exercise the heck out of the patient.

Intense exercise just like chiropractic, also rarely really corrects anything. Exercise sometimes does help to relieve the pain, but usually only if the patient religiously worked out 3 hours per day five days a week. Once they stopped the intense exercise, the pain more than likely returned. Leading to a visit to the acupuncturist. Now the modern acupuncturist is usually quite skilled at using his or her needles to block the pain messages going from the back and neck to the brain. But tiny needles no matter how expertly placed, typically do nothing to restore spinal balance. So you guessed it. You end up with one very frustrated patient with recurrent back or neck pain. And the merry-go-around starts again with a call to another chiropractor: around and around she goes!

At this point I have to give some credit where credit is due. It was the spine surgeons that really started the scientific study of spinal balance. Perhaps after cutting and grinding and drilling the spine, only to have the pain, way too often return in their patients, they too realized they were missing something important. Often times surgeons would fuse a patent's spine and support it with nuts bolts screws and rods. Some patients were improved, many other were no better and too many were worse after their surgery. Even though the surgery was a success, the back pain returned.

So some surgeons, particularly the orthopedists in France started to look at the spine as a single unified structure. They looked at how the mid-back and head and neck could possible influence the movement and function of the lower back. They looked at their surgical failures to see how their fusion surgeries in a patient's lower back effected that levels of the spine far removed from the site of surgery. What they found was the various parts of the spine were (or at least should be) in balance. Change the head and neck and you will see compensations in the lower back. Fuse the lower back with surgery and you will see compensations in the mid-back and head and neck.

What they found was that all the parts or regions of the spine influenced and effected that other parts. Now when they did surgery and fused the spine in such a way that considered spinal balance, there surgical results often were much better. What they discovered was that good spinal balance resulted in less chronic recurrent back pain. This newly discovered concept of spinal balance can be applied to chiropractic and physical therapy treatment for chronic back pain. Now instead of the chiropractor treating the patient to restore motion to the spine, he or she can manipulate the spine to restore spinal balance. Now instead of the physical therapists working to strengthen weak spinal muscles, he or she can stretch tight muscles and strengthen those need to promote and restore spinal balance. It changes the intent of treatment. The goal is not to suppress pain but try to eliminate the abnormal balance in the spine that is the stimulus that causes pain. Restoring spinal balance is an approach that seeks to identify the cause of chronic neck and back pain, then rehabilitate the balance of the spine. Can changes in spinal balance really occur after chiropractic spinal correction? You be the judge.

See spinal correction

Thoracic Spinal Stenosis Symptoms and Treatments

Thoracic spinal stenosis is a condition in which the spinal cord or spinal nerves are compressed by narrowing of the spinal canal or the openings between vertebrae. The thoracic spine has some unique characteristics that make thoracic spinal stenosis a little different than stenosis in other areas. Thoracic spinal stenosis rarely occurs in isolation, but is almost always accompanied by stenosis in the lumbar area, and sometimes also the cervical spine.

There are 12 thoracic vertebra and they articulate with the 12 sets of ribs that protect our major organs. The thoracic spine curves outward, and the curve is gentler than the cervical or lumbar curves. Because of the ribs, the thoracic spine is more fixed than the cervical or lumbar areas, too. Most of the motion of the thoracic spine is rotation, with little flexion or extension.

The spinal canal is naturally narrower in the thoracic area, even though the size of the spinal cord remains the same. That means there is less extra space, so it takes less obstruction to cause problems.

Symptoms

Like cervical and lumbar spinal stenosis, thoracic spinal stenosis can be congenital or acquired. There is a great deal of difference, however, in how it is manifested.

Most thoracic spinal stenosis is due to degenerative changes--arthritis in the joints, bone spurs, disc degeneration and other changes due to aging. As the degeneration progresses, you may experience pain in your back and legs, either aching in your legs when you walk that gets better when you rest, or pain that radiates down your back or legs. You may develop problems with walking or loss of bowel or bladder function.

Because the thoracic spinal canal is already naturally narrow, people with congenital spinal stenosis cannot tolerate any extra pressure on the spinal cord. They tend to develop symptoms of cord compression (loss of sensation or movement below the injury) rapidly after minor injury.

Treatment

Degenerative thoracic spinal stenosis may get better with conservative treatment, which includes anti-inflammatory medications, pain management and physical therapy. Steroid injections or nerve blocks may help manage the pain.

If the pain is uncontrolled or if there are signs of cord compression, however, surgery is necessary to relieve pressure on the cord or spinal nerves. Traditional surgical options are laminectomy or corpectomy to provide more room in the spinal canal and spinal fusion to stabilize the spine and prevent damage to the cord.

Minimally invasive surgery may be an option for some cases of thoracic stenosis. Surgery is done through an endoscope using a microscope to directly visualize the spine. Microsurgical techniques allow the surgeon to perform precise, delicate maneuvers to remove the nerve pressure and repair structures.

Chiropractic Treatment to Correct Spinal Misalignments

Sports injury, poor posture, auto accidents, slips and falls are common causes of spinal misalignments. Chiropractic treatment can easily and effectively correct this condition without medication or surgery. Its fast growing acceptance over conventional treatment is mainly due to the fact that it involves no risks or side effects. Moreover, the therapy is ideal for people belonging to all age groups with musculoskeletal pain caused by subluxation (misalignment of the spinal vertebrae).

Spinal Manipulation Technique and its Advantages

Chiropractors set right a misaligned spine by a technique known as spinal manipulation or spinal adjustment. It is a 'hands-on' manual approach wherein gentle pressure and controlled thrust is applied to the spine. Persistent pain which emanates from the lower back is alleviated as the misaligned vertebrae that put stress on the nerves is pushed back into place. The treatment also relieves muscle spasm and releases blockages, thereby enabling proper and undisrupted functioning of the back.

The advantages of undergoing chiropractic treatment for spinal misalignment are:

• Increases blood circulation
• Relieves excessive pressure on spine
• Calms stressed nerves
• Prevents spinal degeneration
• Enhances flexibility
• Improves range of motion
• Increases vitality
• Strengthens the immune system
• Prevents relapse of the condition

Chiropractors are able to identify the exact region where the spine is misaligned using modern diagnostic devices such as X-ray or MRI. They customize the treatment for individual patients so as to provide fast and effective relief. The use of pain relieving modalities such as ultrasound and TENS has become common among the specialists. They may also suggest certain home based exercise programs for strengthening and stabilizing the spine.

Live an Independent and Better Quality Life

Turning a blind eye to symptoms of spinal misalignments is a grave risk. It can increase the risk of illness or disease and cause great physical and emotional difficulties. Seek chiropractic treatment from licensed and experienced practitioners at the earliest to live an independent and better quality life.