Topics > Spine > Lower Back Surgery

Lower Back Surgery

Lower back surgery is generally performed under either general anesthesia or spinal anesthesia (you will be awake but have no feeling from the waist down). Surgical procedures usually take about 1-3 hours. The surgeon will remove some of the bone and ligament overlying the nerve roots as well as some displaced disk material.

If there is a vertebra is unstable and slipping out of place (see the section on spondylolisthesis), then spinal fusion may also be done. Spinal fusion uses bone grafts from the patient’s hip or ribs, or from a bone bank, to fuse two or more vertebrae into one bone. By fusing the vertebrae, motion is eliminated that may have been causing the patient pain. This procedure also helps treat severe scoliosis. In addition to fusing the vertebrae, the neighboring vertebrae are immobilized using metal rods and/or external braces and casts. Risks due to the surgery include urinary retention and a temporary decrease in intestinal functioning. Following surgery, the patient will have an IV line and a catheter while in the recovery room. The patient will also be instructed to roll over frequently while in the hospital bed, learning to keep the spinal column straight at all times.