Spinal stenosis surgery

Spinal stenosis is known to be one of the surgical surgeries performed by neurosurgeons to treat the narrowing of the spinal cord or neural canal.

The spinal canal in the spine contains the spinal cord and some other nerves that perform many different functions. In some cases, such as arthritis and others; a narrowing of the spinal canal compresses the nerves, so the patient feels pain and numbness in the legs. In most cases, the first option is to resort to some types of pain medications or cortisol injection, but the persistence of pain makes the surgical option optimal in some cases.

Treatment in Jordan takes approximately 4 to 7 days depending on the type of surgery.

A neurosurgeon may recommend a spinal stenosis surgery for the following reasons:

• Arthritis.
• Difficulty while standing or walking.
• Pain in the legs exceeds the back pain.
• Weakness and numbness in the legs.
• Feet problems.
• Cervical vertebrae pain.

The patient undergoes a series of tests before the spinal stenosis surgery, including:

• X-Ray examination.
• MRI examination of the spinal cord.
• CT scan.
• Clinical examination of the patient.

Like all other surgeries, spinal stenosis surgery may include some complications and risks, including: 

• Bleeding.
• Infection.
• Damage of the neighboring nerves.
• Stiffness at the vertebral column area.

Spinal stenosis surgery includes the following steps:

• Preparation of the patient: It is advised that the patient before the surgery to refrain from taking certain medications for a certain period depending on the patient's condition, such as arthritis drugs and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin; in order to reduce the chances of any abnormal bleeding, also it is important to keep away from smoking for approximately two weeks before the surgery. The patient begins to fast for food and drink from midnight before the surgery and he is given antibiotics to avoid any infections during and after the surgery.
• During the surgery: the narrowing of the neural canal can be treated with one of the following surgical procedures:

1. Removing the vertebral lamina (a component of the vertebra) and perhaps some ligaments around the vertebra to widen the nerve canal. This procedure is performed by making an incision in the back area (at the spine).
2. Expanding the cavities in the vertebra, which is specialized for the passage of the nerve roots to release and decompress them, this surgery is performed by making an incision in the back or in the neck in the spine area.
3. Removing the vertebral lamina and fixed the vertebrae. This surgery lasts for several hours through expanding of the neural canal is done by removing the lamina between the affected vertebrae and then merging the vertebrae after the addition of bone tissue from the patient's own body or from a donor or artificial bone. The neurosurgeon makes an incision in the back of the affected vertebrae under general anesthesia.

The patient remains in the hospital for several days, especially in the case of a vertebral stabilization, but in other surgeries the patient may be able to go home on the same day, so the period of healing varies depending on the surgical procedure that the patient underwent, it can last for three months or more in case of vertebrae fixation.

The most important thing that can provide the patient with a quick recovery period is his adherence to the instructions of the neurosurgeon, by following the useful tips such as walking, doing exercises under the supervision of the physiotherapist, not to lift any heavy weights and taking medicines on time.

The results of spinal stenosis surgery are often very good and can relieve the patient of leg pain and numbness depending on the patient's ability to adhere to advice and avoid cautions, besides the type of the procedure.