How is a cervical foraminotomy performed?
How is a cervical foraminotomy performed?
The skin incision is about 3-5cm down the back of your neck. It is vertical and in the midline. The muscles at the back of the neck are gently separated from the spinal bones, and the bony roof over the spinal nerve is carefully removed using small drills and other fine instruments.
What happens after posterior cervical foraminotomy?
Recovery from posterior cervical foraminotomy surgery can take 4-6 weeks, but patients continue to heal for up to a year after surgery. When can I return to work and/or activities? Walking is highly encouraged, immediately after surgery and throughout your post operative period.
How long does pain last after foraminotomy?
Pain at the incision site and the spasms of the back muscle are common but resolve within a week or two following surgery. Full recovery time is typically between two and three months.
How successful is a foraminotomy?
6 The success rates reported for open paraspinal foraminotomy are as high as 72% to 83%,4,7-14 and this technique has been considered the gold standard for the surgical treatment of lumbar foraminal or far lateral stenosis.
How successful is a cervical foraminotomy?
Posterior cervical foraminotomy has been well de- scribed in the literature. The immediate success rates for symptom resolution vary from 82% to 100%,19,25,26 but long-term outcomes are even more variable, with success rates ranging from 75% to 97%.
What is a posterior cervical foraminotomy?
Posterior cervical foraminotomy is a minimally invasive surgery to enlarge the space where the nerve root exits the spinal cord, known as the neural foramen.
How is a foraminotomy performed for cervical disc bulge?
Using a high speed drill and microinstruments, once the nerve root affected is identified, the whole out of which the nerve passes is enlarged. This is the foraminotomy (see below): The amount of bony removal (in red) is shown below: The nerve root is then gently elevated and if there is a disk bulge this is palpated.
What is a foraminotomy?
This is the foraminotomy (see below): The amount of bony removal (in red) is shown below: The nerve root is then gently elevated and if there is a disk bulge this is palpated. If identified, the disk bulge is incised and typically a tiny piece of disk is removed. The whole disk is not removed.