Spinal bone spur surgery is almost always recommended as a last resort treatment option. Patients suffering from neck or back pain associated with bone spurs usually can manage their symptoms using non-surgical, conservative treatments. Only if pain medication, physical therapy, hot/cold compresses, corticosteroid injections, or other conservative treatment methods fail to provide relief will surgery become an option in most cases.
Rewards and Risks
There are two main objectives for any spinal bone spur surgery:
To alleviate pain, tingling, numbness, muscle weakness, and other symptoms caused by the nerve compression that is usually associated with the presence of excess bony matter (bone spurs, or osteophytes).
To provide or improve spinal stability that has been reduced, either because of deteriorated anatomical components or through excision during surgery.
Those are the potential rewards. However, no one should undergo an open back or neck surgery without understanding the potential risks. The main risk is failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS), which can be caused by:
An error in diagnosis before the operation
Surgery performed incorrectly, either by location or procedure
Bone graft rejection
Fusion hardware failure
Secondary symptoms generated in previously healthy vertebral segments
Nerve root impingement caused by the growth of scar tissue
Inadequate decompression of affected nerves
Minimally Invasive Option
Many thousands of patients have opted for laser-assisted procedures to alleviate back and neck pain caused by bone spurs. This form of surgery has a much shorter recuperation period and requires no insertion of fusion hardware. In contrast, open back or neck bone spur surgery is performed under general anesthesia, requires a hospital stay, restricts movement for several weeks or months, and carries the risks inherent to any major operation, including infection.
Is Emergency Surgery Ever Necessary?
The existence of bone spurs, bulging discs, herniated discs, and other spinal abnormalities is usually not considered a serious or life-threatening condition, so it is rare for these spinal issues to require emergency surgery. However, if a spinal irregularity causes the impingement of a nerve bundle called the cauda equina, then immediate surgical treatment could be required to prevent permanent paralysis in the lower body and urinary/bowel incontinence.
The cauda equina nerve bundle extends off the lower termination of the spinal cord. Any tissue or legion that presses on the cauda equina can disable these nerves, affecting one's ability to walk and go to the bathroom. Impingement of the cauda equina also can cause severe low back pain and numbness in the "saddle" area - or the part of the body that would touch a saddle.
If the impingement of the cauda equina is allowed to continue for too long, it can cause permanent damage. That's why anyone who experiences lower back pain coupled with groin numbness, incontinence, and difficulty walking should go to the emergency room as soon as possible. If cauda equina syndrome is diagnosed there, emergency surgery may be necessary to remove the herniated disc, bone spur, or any other tissue that's placing pressure on the cauda equina.
