Marc Darrow MD,JD
Many of the people I see for a non-surgical consultation of their neck pain have been offered a surgery. While there are many different types of cervical spinal surgery including the Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion procedure, the Cervical Laminaplasty, Laminectomy with Fusion and a Cervical Artificial Disc Replacement, in all these surgeries something is getting removed because pain and other problems are being caused by cervical degenerative disc disease.
Before these people come into our office for the initial consultation, we do a pretty good screening and assessment of the patient’s condition. We want to see the people that we can help with stem cell therapy. We do want to also be realistic in what the treatment can and cannot do.
For some, there may be no avoiding the surgery. An advanced compression of the spinal cord that is causing neurological problems such as pain, tingling and numbness that goes from the neck into the upper back, shoulder, down the arms and into the hands are concerns that should be discussed with a surgeon. If the surgeon suggests a period of conservative care, stem cell therapy MAY, and let’s reinforce MAY help with some of the symptoms. However if you are having weakness, coordination difficulties, bladder and bowel control issues, stem cell therapy will not be a realistic surgical alternative.
People are scared at the thought of neck surgery. They are also scared at the thought of not having neck surgery
I regularly see patients who have been told by another doctor that they need a neck surgery to prevent the further degeneration of their cervical spine. Some of these patients are very frightened by what their doctor told them. Some were told that if their symptoms progress they could risk permanent damage to their ability to function maybe to the point of paralysis.
“I am worried if I do not get surgery my neck will get worse”
Research has strongly suggested that many patients decide on cervical fusion surgery because they fear a progression of their problem that will lead to permanent disability. However, follow-up data (1) on patients with degenerative disease of the upper (cervical) spinal vertebrae show little or no evidence of worsening degeneration over time. Recently, doctors published findings that suggested that the majority of these patients may be stable and do not develop progression of disease or catastrophic neurologic deficits.
The researchers identified 27 patients with cervical degenerative spondylolisthesis (a slipped disc causing nerve pressure) for inclusion in their study.
Here is what they found. For many of you, this terminology may sound familiar and you may recognize that your MRI included many of these terms.
- Eleven patients had cervical spondylolisthesis at C4-C5,
- Nine at C3-C4,
- Six at C5-C6,
- and one at C2-C3.
- Initially, 6 had anterolisthesis (disc forward displacement) and 21 had retrolisthesis (disc backward displacement)
- At baseline, 3 of 6 patients with anterolisthesis and 7 of 21 patients with retrolisthesis had translation of more than 2 mm on dynamic views.
- At baseline, 11 had no cervical symptoms, (This is a scenario I talk about often, MRI shows disc displacement, but the person shows no sign of pain or loss of motion. Should this person be scared into an unnecessary surgery?)
- 8 had cervicalgia (sharp neck pain that is felt in back and shoulders)
- 7 had radiculopathy (radiating pain into the elbowes and hands)
- and 1 had myelopathy. Myelopathy needs a surgical consultation as paralysis and incontinence are at risk.
Same patients, on average, seen more than three years later show limited or no progression of cervical spine disease
- At the final visit, none of the anterolistheses or retrolistheses had progressed.
- At the final visit, 7 of 10 patients with initial translation of more than 2 mm on dynamic views had no change.
- Of 17 patients with less than 2 mm of initial dynamic motion, 3 patients progressed to have more than 2 mm of dynamic translation. All 3 of these had retrolisthesis initially. None had clinical worsening of symptoms at the final visit.
CONCLUSION:
The natural history of cervical degenerative anterolisthesis and retrolisthesis seems to be stable during 2 years to nearly 8 years. Although those with retrolisthesis seem to have a higher propensity to increase their subluxation, none experienced dislocation or neurological injury.
Observation, rush to surgery NOT endorsed by researchers
Doctors at the Rothman Institute, Thomas Jefferson University and Hospitals found: “With many surgeons expanding their indications for cervical spine surgery, the number of patients being treated operatively has increased. Unfortunately, the number of patients requiring revision procedures is also increasing, but very little literature exists reviewing changes in the indications or operative planning for revision reconstruction.” (2)
What these researchers are saying in their study is that doctors have broadened the criteria for neck surgery so more can be justified. However, the literature is not keeping up with ways to help the increasing new group of failed neck surgery patients.
This study was followed by a 2020 paper (3) that discussed the complications of having to go back in and fix a failed first neck surgery. Here is what they said: “cervical revision surgery required painstaking planning and mastery of a variety of surgical techniques. The results were rewarding in half and satisfactory in a quarter of the patients. The complication rate was lower than expected. In the most complex cases, referral to a specialized center is recommended.”
These are the actual numbers:
- 102 patients who underwent a cervical revision surgery.
- The complications that required the second surgery were:
- Adjacent segment disease, the neck segments above and below the fusion were made worse by the surgery. (40% of patients).
- Infection (23% of patients).
- Implant failure-pseudarthrosis. In other words the cervical fusion did not fuse. (22% of patients)
- Non-infectious complication (typically inflammation and swelling)
- The surgery caused some type of deformity
- The age patient age was 63 years old
- Of the 102 patients undergoing a second surgery:
- The outcome was excellent in 19 patients (19%),
- good in 37 patients (36%),
- satisfactory in 27 patients (26%),
- and poor in six patients (6%).
- Thirteen patients (13%) were lost to follow-up.
Compounding this is the always present rush to surgery spurred on by MRI. Doctors at Yale University suggested to doctors not to solely rely on MRI readings when evaluating patients for neck pain treatment: “Physicians should be aware of inconsistencies inherent in the interpretation of cervical MRI findings and should be aware that some findings demonstrate lower agreement than others (in recommending surgery).” (4) This agrees with the first study showing a majority of patients with clearly defined MRI abnormalities who were not at all bothered by neck pain.
Do patients rush to neck surgery because they are tired of pain medications?
The use of opioids or painkillers among people who have been suffering with long-term neck pain sufferers is significant. We see patients all the time who come into the office with a gallon size baggie of current and past medications. What is worse is that many of these prescriptions are not helpful. This is when many patients decide on the surgery. Not because of fear of worsening condition, but rather, fear of opioid addiction and the side effects.
Use of painkillers after surgery is worse
Many people get a good benefit from a cervical spine surgical procedure. Some do not. For those who did not get benefit from the surgery and their physical conditioned worsened, the need and abuse of painkillers became that much worse. Doctors publishing in the medical journal Anesthesia & Analgesia (4) warn against theses abuses of prolonged pain-killer usage after surgery. They reported “Preoperative factors, including legitimate prescribed opioid use, self-perceived risk of addiction, and depressive symptoms each independently predicted more prolonged opioid use after surgery. Each of these factors was a better predictor of prolonged opioid use than postoperative pain duration or severity.”
The investigators of the study suggested that the patients felt or knew that they would be in great pain during the surgical recovery period and that other factors including depression added to this fear. Opioid addiction came easily. The prolonged opioid use after surgery made healing at the least, difficult.
Especially among the older patients
Published in the Archives of Internal Medicine (6) researchers suggested that prescribing opioids to older patients shortly after surgery resulted in long-term analgesic use. The researchers suggested while opioids can be beneficial, they are associated with significant adverse effects such as sedation, constipation and respiratory depression, and their long-term use can lead to physiologic tolerance and addiction.
Chronic neck and back leads to problems of pain management including over-medication. If you have suffered from long-standing pain, chronic prolonged pain surgery and you want to explore ways of finding alternatives to opioid use, let’s explore the possibilities of regenerative medicine.
Stem Cell therapy for neck pain
Do you have questions? Ask Dr. Darrow
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A leading provider of stem cell therapy, platelet rich plasma and prolotherapy
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Stem cell and PRP injections for musculoskeletal conditions are not FDA approved. We do not treat disease. We do not offer IV treatments. There are no guarantees that this treatment will help you. Prior to our treatment, seek advice from your medical physician. Neither Dr. Darrow, nor any associate, offer medical advice from this transmission. This information is offered for educational purposes only. The transmission of this information does not create a physician-patient relationship between you and Dr. Darrow or any associate. We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, usefulness or adequacy of any resource, information, product, or process available from this transmission. We cannot be responsible for the receipt of your email since spam filters and servers often block their receipt. If you have a medical issue, please call our office. If you have a medical emergency, please call 911.
References
1 Park MS, Moon SH, Lee HM, Kim SW, Kim TH, Suh BK, Riew KD. The natural history of degenerative spondylolisthesis of the cervical spine with 2-to 7-year follow-up. Spine. 2013 Feb 15;38(4):E205-10.
2. Helgeson MD, Albert TJ. Surgery for Failed Cervical Spine Reconstruction. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2011 Nov 8. [Epub ahead of print]
3 Papavero L, Lepori P, Schmeiser G. Revision surgery in cervical spine. European Spine Journal. 2020 Feb;29(1):47-56.
3. Fu MC, Webb ML, Buerba RA, et al. Comparison of agreement of cervical spine degenerative pathology findings in magnetic resonance imaging studies. Spine J. 2016 Jan 1;16(1):42-8. doi: 10.1016/j.spinee.2015.08.026. Epub 2015 Aug 17.
4. Carroll I, Barelka P, Wang CK, et al. A Pilot Cohort Study of the Determinants of Longitudinal Opioid Use After Surgery. Anesth Analg. 2012 Jun 22.
5. Wolf MS et al (2012). Risk of unintentional overdose with non-prescription acetaminophen products. Journal of General Internal Medicine; DOI: 10.1007/s11606-012-2096-3
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