Microdiscectomy
Microdiscectomy
The main goal of Microdiscectomy is to take pressure off your nerves to relieve your back pain. Microdiscectomy, also known as microdecompression, is one of the most common minimally invasive spine surgery procedures.
Before the procedure
In the days before your surgery, tell your surgeon about any medications you take at home, including herbal supplements and over-the-counter medications. You may be asked to stop taking aspirin or other medications that thin your blood and may increase bleeding.
- Tell your surgeon if you or someone in your family has any history of reaction to general anesthesia.
- If you smoke, you may be asked to stop smoking well before surgery and avoid smoking for a period of time after surgery.
- Before surgery, you will probably be given instructions on when to stop eating and drinking. It’s common to have nothing to eat or drink after midnight on the night before the procedure.
- Ask your surgeon if you should take your regular medications with a small sip of water on the day of the procedure
FAQS
Frequently asked questions about surgical procedures
Can I use my insurance and get these prices?
Payment is due 14 calendar days prior to your surgery date. If, after the cutoff, your account is not settled, your case must be postponed.
How quickly can I have surgery?
How will I meet my surgeon?
If I had a car or work accident, would you work with my employer or attorney for payment?
What if I get sick right before my surgery?
You could develop a respiratory infection, a urinary tract infection, COVID, or some other condition that may necessitate postponement. There is no penalty when this happens.
What’s Included:
- Facility fee
- Graft and hardware costs (if needed)
- Surgeon and assistant surgeon fees
- Anesthesiologist
- Time in the recovery unit (at no additional charge)
- Initial consultation visit
- One post-operative visit
*Please note: If you choose not to proceed with surgery after the initial consultation, or if you delay your procedure for more than 6 weeks, you will need to update your consultation at a cost of $375.
What’s not included:
- Lab testing before and after the surgery, as needed
- Electrocardiogram (EKG), depending on age. If you had one elsewhere in the past 6 months and it read “normal”, we can forego this expense.
- Imaging costs. X-rays and MRIs can be obtained anywhere.
- Physical therapy services
- Medications you’ll need (oral or IV antibiotic infusions if an infection arises)
- Wound care
- Bracing supplies
- Additional doctor visits (a pre-operative visit with the surgeon, in person, and any required post-op follow-ups after the suture removal to monitor your progress
- Additional surgical intervention if a complication arises
- Additional imaging or hospital care if a blood clot develops
During the procedure
For the procedure, you’ll typically have general anesthesia, and during the surgery, you’ll be positioned lying on your stomach. Using one of the techniques above, your surgeon will remove the part of your disc that’s pressing on your nerve or spinal cord.
Your surgeon will pay careful attention to your nerve roots during surgery and will check the areas surrounding your disc to make sure there are no other additional disc fragments that need to be removed. Usually, only a small part of your disc is removed—surgeons rarely remove most or all of your disc.
Most microdiscectomies take about an hour to complete.
What to expect after your surgery
Microdiscectomy Recovery
The good news is that many patients have significant pain relief from a microdiscectomy and can quickly return to their normal lives, generally in less than 2 weeks. However, your doctor will advise you on how quickly you can return to exercise and your other daily activities.
A successful microdiscectomy should accomplish what a traditional open discectomy accomplishes—but with a faster, less painful recovery
Risks of the procedure
Microdiscectomy is a relatively safe procedure. However, all surgeries carry some risks. You will need to sign a consent form that explains the risks and benefits of the surgery.
- Your pain can come back.
- Your disc can re-herniate.
- Not all of your disc material may have been removed during your procedure.
- Your spinal cord, nerves, and blood vessels can be injured.
- Reactions to the anesthesia
- Bleeding
- Infection
- Nerve injury
- Spinal fluid leak
- Voice change
- Loosened artificial disk
- Need for further surgery
There may be other risks, depending on your specific medical condition. Be sure to discuss any concerns with your surgeon before the procedure.
Can I Travel to St George for Surgery?
Yes, and we’ll help you make all your arrangements.
- We have arrangements to try to obtain free flights through a non-profit volunteer pilot organization. We can do this with 10 days’ advance notice in most cases.
- We have discount codes for the Holiday Inn in town. This hotel is 1.5 miles from the surgery center and 2 miles from our clinic.
- We’ll arrange to send your after-surgery medications to your hometown pharmacy for pickup before you leave.
What if I would rather drive to St George?
No problem, we can help with those plans as well. When you have surgery with us, we’ll need to make sure you’re safe and comfortable after surgery. We’ll arrange cold compression therapy that requires an AC/DC adaptor/transformer and frequent stops to stretch and refill the ice reservoir on the road.
We’ll ask about the vehicle you’ll travel in to ensure you have a way to elevate and stretch out in the vehicle on the road while someone else does the driving.
How are follow-up and initial consultations handled?
In-person and telehealth consultations are possible with the surgeon to whom your case is assigned. The initial visit is included in the surgical package and is valued at $375.
We can also obtain the flights from the volunteer pilot nonprofit if you’d like to come for initial and follow-up visits in person. One follow-up visit is included in the surgical package at a value of $175. Any additional visits are charged at the time of service to your credit or debit card.
Transparent Pricing Guide
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