For individuals experiencing back, neck, arm or leg pain due to spinal stenosis, relief may come in the form of spinal decompression. There are several surgical options that can offer symptomatic relief by reducing pressure on the various elements of your spine.

What conditions can spinal decompression treat?

Patients suffering from conditions such as bulging discs, herniated disks, pinched nerves, Sciatica or spinal stenosis may benefit from spinal compression treatments.

What are the types of spinal decompression treatments?

There are both non-surgical and surgical types of treatments. For example, physical therapy and nerve stimulation are two non-surgical options. However, your physician may recommend spinal decompression surgery if other therapies have not significantly helped or if you are having sensory loss or weakness due to nerve compression.

In this case, your surgical options may include procedures such as a laminotomoy or laminectomy, where a surgeon removes a piece of the bone surrounding the spinal canal. Removing these pieces of bone will help open your spinal canal and relieve pressure.

Other surgical procedures may include a corpectomy, discectomy or foraminotomy.

What are the risks and benefits of spinal decompression?

It is always best to discuss your individual situation with your physician. Using a stepped approach to treating back pain allows your physician to determine the treatment option that is best for your individual condition, with the least possible risk. The correct treatment, whether non-surgical or surgical, can help return you to the quality of life you are seeking.

Recovering from Spinal Decompression surgery

While recovery will vary with each individual patient, minimally invasive spinal surgery decreases the amount of time before a patient can return home. In general, most patients may return home the same day.

Following surgery, physical therapy will help you return to strength.  The amount of time you will need to fully return to daily activities will depend on the procedure that you have had.

Making the decision to seek spinal decompression treatment is an important one. The experienced and innovative physicians at New Jersey Brain and Spine have helped patients for more than 25 years. We have treated more than 40,000 patients with complex spine and neurological conditions.

Please contact us to discuss your treatment options, or to seek a second opinion on your medical diagnosis.