Lawrence Said:

Are most spine surgery unsatisfactory? & what about endoscopic surgery regarding the spine?

We Answered:

It's absolutely true that SOME spine surgeries do not give a satisfactory result and equally true, imo, that the majority DO have good results.

A difficulty in operating on the spine, is that while a surgeon can take pressure off of a nerve - recovery of a nerve is basically up to the nerve. Spine surgery is not like, for example, general surgery in which an offensive appendix or gall bladder that is causing pain can be removed.

That being said...spine surgery in the hands of an experienced surgeon has excellent results. And, part of that experience is making good decisions as to who will benefit from surgery and who will not. For example, a patient with leg pain from diabetes with a herniated disc could have surgery, but not be any better. A good surgeon will check for other conditions like this, that may affect recovery.

Another factor in success is timing of surgery. It's a balance between giving enough time to try conservative things (not rushing into surgery) and not letting nerves be compressed for so long that their recovery is less likely.

As for endoscopic surgery of the spine...in my opinion, spine surgery is very dependent on touch. The surgeon uses instruments to "feel" the space around the nerves to be sure they are decompressed and this is less easily done through a scope. With use of a microscope however, many procedures are done through much smaller incisions than years ago and many are outpatient surgeries now.

Hope this helps!

Jamie Said:

endoscopic spine surgery?

We Answered:

check with your health care provider but I would think it shouldnt be much of a cost than lets say spine replacement or tumor removal

Patrick Said:

gues this is something related to ENT?

We Answered:

This all sound like routine chronic stuff without consequence--with the exception of the pulmonary nodules. These need to be further characterized. Are they residuals of chronic granulomas or old scarring that are unchanged from your previous xrays or are they new pulmonary nodules that bear further evaluation to determine exactly what they are? Your doctor should have a pretty good handle on this part of it.