Do You Really Need Back Surgery?: A Surgeon's Guide to Neck and Back Pain and How to Choose Your Treatment

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For the half million people who undergo back surgery each year, and the additional million who are seriously contemplating it, Do You Really Need Back Surgery? is a godsend--an informed, reliable guide to when you should consider surgery and when you should not.

Written by an internationally recognized expert in nerve and spinal surgery, this highly readable guide covers everything back patients need to know to make informed decisions about their treatment. Featuring 115 ...

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Do You Really Need Back Surgery?: A Surgeon's Guide to Neck and Back Pain and How to Choose Your Treatment

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More About This Book

Overview


For the half million people who undergo back surgery each year, and the additional million who are seriously contemplating it, Do You Really Need Back Surgery? is a godsend--an informed, reliable guide to when you should consider surgery and when you should not.

Written by an internationally recognized expert in nerve and spinal surgery, this highly readable guide covers everything back patients need to know to make informed decisions about their treatment. Featuring 115 illustrations, the book discusses the details of spinal anatomy; the difference between acute, chronic, and recurring pain; shows how to keep the spine healthy; and explains such terms as spurs, stenosis, and slippage. It reveals what clues your physician uses to predict whether a given type of pain is likely to go away with rest and exercise, or may become an emergency. Dr. Filler discusses the risks of surgery, the decisions you may be faced with and what options you have, and your expectations for recovery. He provides detailed explanations of the wide array of spinal injections and surgeries, including discectomies and fusions, as well as innovative procedures such as electrothermic and laser techniques and artificial disks. He explains the various medical imaging and diagnostic tests available and even covers the complexities of health insurance.

The new and extensively revised Second Edition now covers dozens of advanced techniques in spinal diagnostics and treatment as well as advances in new pain medications and new surgeries that minimize recovery time and achieve better outcomes. A new section on the benefits and risks of a wide array of herbal medicines has been added. Finally, the book features two entirely new chapters that describe a series of different nerve entrapment syndromes that can cause headache, neck, shoulder, and arm pain as well as causing buttock and leg pain--but are not caused by spine problems.

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Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"This is the first book that bridges the gap between a surgical textbook and an elementary lay book. Dr. Filler clearly describes the nature of back pain and treatment in a fashion that is sufficiently detailed yet reasonably concise to address these important issues. He takes out the mystery and writes in an engaging readable style."--Joshua P. Prager, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA

"Dr. Filler's text takes you from injury, through understanding and decision-making, to treatment and recovery for most common problems with the spine. In addition to giving you important knowledge about your back, it also will provide an equally important 'peace of mind.'"--Richard Fessler, University of Chicago

"Dr. Filler demonstrates the skills of a gifted communicator by carefully refining details into a succinct and relevant script."--James Byrne, University of Oxford

"This excellent book should have wide appeal to a range of medical professionals and to patients.... The book succeeds in its aim 'to fill a major void by providing a comprehensive and authoritative reference source to patients facing spinal surgery.' It can be recommended with confidence."--South African Medical Journal

Library Journal
For patients suffering from neck and back pain, neurological surgeon Filler provides valuable, detailed information about causes as well as the diagnostic and therapeutic tools available for treatment. In Part 1, he covers the anatomy of the spine, tips for keeping the back healthy, and types of pain. In Part 2, he discusses the different kinds of surgical therapies. Unfortunately, there were some problems in the proofs, e.g., many of the 85 halftone illustrations particularly the x-rays are too small and dark to be helpful. Still, this text is unique for its balanced view of both the causes of and treatment options for back and neck pain. Filler places equal emphasis on surgery and other therapies like physical therapy, back school, acupuncture, yoga, chiropractic, and Rolfing. Recommended for consumer health collections. Marge Kars, Bronson Methodist Hosp., Kalamazoo, MI Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780199895519
  • Publisher: Oxford University Press
  • Publication date: 1/11/2013
  • Edition number: 2
  • Pages: 464
  • Sales rank: 624,412
  • Product dimensions: 6.10 (w) x 9.10 (h) x 0.90 (d)

Meet the Author

Aaron G. Filler, MD, PhD is one of the world's leading authorities on nerve and spinal surgery. He is Medical Director of both the Institute for Nerve Medicine and the Center for Advanced Spinal Neurosurgery, and is an Associate of the Institute for Spinal Disorders, at Cedars Sinai Medical Center, in Los Angeles, California.

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Table of Contents

Part I: Spine & Nerve Health
1. Acute, Chronic & Recurring: A Quick Tour of Neck & Back Pain
2. The Nature of Pain and How It Is Treated
3. Keeping the Spine Healthy: Ergonomics for Life
4. Renewal Without Surgery: Schools of Therapy
5. Anatomy 101: From Bones, Disks and Joints to Mind, Muscles and Nerves
6. Disks, Spurs, Stenosis, Slippage and Osteoporosis
7. Spinal Symptoms: Where Does That Pain Come From?
8. Accidents of the Embryo: Spina Bifida & Variations at Birth
9. Patterns of Nerve Pinches: From Shoulder to Toe (NEW)
10. Medical Imaging & Diagnostic Tests: X-rays, Electrons, & Magnetic Spin
11. Regeneration & Repair in the Nerves and Spinal Cord

Part II: Spine & Nerve Surgery
12. Without an Incision: Percutaneous Procedures for Diagnosis & Treatment
13. Surgery-Before, During & After: Common Elements You Should Know About
14. Surgery to Take the Pressure Off the Neural Tissues of the Spine
15. Surgery Inside the Spinal Dural Lining
16. Spine Carpentry: History & Principles of Rebuilding the Broken Spine
17. Fixing the Cervical Spine: Surgical Approaches to the Neck
18. Thoracic Spine Operations: Surgical Approaches to Mid- & Upper-Back Problems
19. Lumbar Implants and Fusion: Major Surgeries for the Low Back
20. Surgery to Release Nerve Entrapments in the Shoulder, Arm, Pelvis and Legs (NEW)
21. Genes, Designer Proteins, and Biomaterials: The Role of Biotechnology in Spine and Nerve Surgery
22. Risks, Outcomes and Choices
23. Recovery After Surgery
24. Health Insurance and the Cost of Surgery
Epilogue: Knowledge and Resilience

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