Cervical Disc Replacement Superior to Spinal Fusion

Up until recently, if you were a sufferer of degenerative disc disease or other cervical disc problems, your best option for a treatment was spinal fusion. While spinal fusion certainly did revolutionize the treatment of cervical disc issues in the 1990’s, it turned out to only be a sort of ‘band aid’ for later problems.

Since figuring out that spinal fusion was only postponing cervical disc problems and not fixing them, researchers have been hard at work to find a new way to treat degenerative disc disease. Their answer is a cervical disc replacement that costs nearly the same as spinal fusion and offers better results.

The first artificial disc to be approved by the FDA in the United States is the Prestige disc, approved in August of 2006. St. Vincent Healthcare has performed around 20 of the procedures using the Prestige disc since it was approved, with great results.

The disc is thought to be superior to spinal fusions due to range of movement: it pivots and preserves motion in the spine, while sliding forward in the same motion that normal, natural discs slide forward. Because of this, it doesn’t restrict neck movement in the way that spinal fusion does or fuse together vertebrae which could cause issues later.

Currently, other brands and types of artificial discs are being tested for safety and effectiveness.








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