Orthopedic surgeons specialize in diagnosing, prescribing treatment, rehabilitating injuries, and treating conditions that affect the body’s musculoskeletal system, which helps with body motion and comprises the bones, joints, ligaments, tendons, and nerves. Due to constant engagement, the musculoskeletal system is prone to injuries, trauma, illnesses, and conditions that affect your daily operations.
Orthopedic surgeons work to treat a wide range of injuries and conditions. These can include neck pain, broken bones or ligaments in the body’s joints, and spine fractures from osteoporosis-related accidents that result when our spines become too fragile for themselves due to advanced age before time has properly healed naturally. If your doctor has told you that you need spine surgery, it is important to know what to expect before and after the procedure. Here are seven things to discuss with your ortho spine surgeon in New York.
1. Orthopedic Surgeon Specializations
The orthopedics field is vast, and after orthopedic surgery residency, orthopedic surgeons may pursue one or two years of specialized training to acquire new skills in special areas of surgery like sports medicine and spine surgery. These specialized areas enable orthopedic surgeons to offer specialized treatment to patients with specific illnesses and conditions. For instance, sports medicine focuses on treating patients with sports injuries and how to improve athletic performance to ensure that when athletes suffer different injuries, then physical therapy can be used to bring the athletes back to optimum performance and as quickly as possible.
On the other hand, spine surgery offers treatment and spine care options for spinal conditions resulting from disease and trauma to the spine. Most times, the Orthopedic surgeons who specialize in spine surgery are always confused for neurosurgeons. It is good to note that these two specialties can perform spine surgery. Both can start as medical doctors or doctors of osteopathic medicine, then complete a five or six-year residency program to treat musculoskeletal or neurological conditions. From there, both orthopedic surgeons and neurosurgeons specialize in spine surgery by completing spine surgery fellowships to gain specialized skills in spine surgery.
2. Your Spine Treatment Options
After an examination and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to determine the extent of your spinal injury, the spinal surgeon will prescribe treatment options for you. Take note that this discussion will be based on several factors that include your age, severity of your condition, health history, and the spinal issues identified. The best approach is to find out if there are any other non-invasive treatment options apart from spinal surgical treatment. Some non-invasive options for spinal rehabilitation that the spinal surgeon may be prescribed include physical therapy, injections, acupuncture, massage therapy, and spinal braces. It is also important to note that some spinal disorders like arthritis and spinal stenosis can still be managed by other forms of treatment like back bracing and injections. Surgery should only be prescribed if all other forms of treatment won’t be effective.
3. The Side Effects of Any Spine Treatment Plan and Potential Risks
As a patient, having this discussion with your spine surgeon before undertaking any treatment plan for spine and spinal cord-related surgeries helps you manage your expectations and enables you to decide if that treatment plan is worth it. It is also important to correctly answer any questions about your medical history, allergies, and lifestyle patterns.
Your answers will help the surgeon understand the risks you may be exposed to about your treatment options. Some risks include blood clots, anesthesia, reactions, dural tear when the thin layer protecting the spinal cord and spinal nerves is broken during the procedure, infections, lung problems, and even death if the risks are not addressed early enough.
4. Your Medical History
Discussions about your medical history are important in determining which spine treatment plan will be best for you, and you should answer any question about aspects of your medical history as accurately as possible. In addition to accessing potential risks, your answers will enable the orthopedic spine surgeon to seek further medical clearance from any medical doctors before administering any treatment. The answers will also help determine any comorbidity that may worsen your medical situation during or after your orthopedic spine surgery. During the discussion, some of the details about your medical history that your spinal surgeon may be interested in include previous cardiovascular conditions, obesity, high blood pressure, pulmonary embolism, Sleep apnea, Diabetes, and Osteoporosis.
5. The Qualifications of an Orthopedic Surgeons’
This discussion aims to determine the qualifications and experience of the orthopedic surgeon that are relevant to treat conditions related to both simple and complex spinal disorders and boost your confidence in the responsible orthopedic surgeon. Spine specialists and spine surgeons undergo fellowship training after medical school and residency to treat spine conditions and disorders. They have been trained to access, treat and respond to any risks associated with brain surgery, pain management, and other complex spinal disorders that may require surgery. A board-certified and fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeon should be your best choice for your spine surgery treatment.
6. How Long Will Be the Recovery Time for a Spine Treatment
Your surgeon should give you details about the procedure you will undergo. You should also know what you will expect after the treatment and when you may resume normal duties. Some procedures may be handled as an outpatient case, and you would generally take fewer days to recover, while others will require you to stay in the hospital for a few more days until the doctor is sure that you can go home.
7. The Possibility of Relapse After Spine Treatment
While having this discussion, it will be important to find out if your condition is just an episode or has the possibility of re-occurrence. Assessing your condition will put everything into context and prepare you for future treatment if needed. Your surgeon should encourage you to get a second opinion about your condition from another doctor. This is important to do because you want to make sure that you are getting the best possible treatment for your spine condition. It allows you to confirm your results and help you decide which spine center you will get treated from or the spine doctors to handle your case. This decision may be based on the quality of care, associated costs, and the doctors’ qualifications and experience.
Experience a Cutting Edge Orthopedic Treatment and Care in New York
We at New York Spine Specialist are experts in surgical and non-surgical management of spine conditions that affect the back. Our staff has years of experience handling all complications related to this area, so you can rest assured knowing we’ll take care of everything necessary for your comfort!
Don’t hesitate to visit any of our state-of-the-art stations spread across New York City if you experience any pain in your back or neck or suffer soft tissue injury and limited motion. Contact us today at (516) 355-0111 or request an appointment.