Cervical discectomy and fusion
Anterior cervical discectomy with fusion or disc replacement, for cervical radiculopathy and myelopathy.
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Neck pain and cervical disc herniation in Tijuana
Pain running down the arm, tingling in the fingers, or clumsy hands. The last of those three is the one not to let slide.
What this condition actually is
The cervical spine holds the head and protects the spinal cord along its most mobile stretch. With wear come disc protrusions, osteophytes and canal narrowing. Depending on what they compress, the picture is radiculopathy — a root — or myelopathy — the cord itself — and those two are not managed the same way.
Cervical radiculopathy is pain leaving the neck and running down the arm to a specific territory of the hand, with tingling or weakness. It is very unpleasant, but a significant share improves within weeks with conservative care: analgesia, physiotherapy and postural adjustment.
Myelopathy is quieter and more serious. The first signs are usually clumsy hands — buttons become difficult, objects are dropped, handwriting deteriorates — an unsteady gait and sometimes an electric sensation running down the back on bending the neck. Myelopathy tends to progress, and there surgery aims to halt deterioration rather than recover what is lost.
Symptoms and warning signs of neck pain and cervical disc disease
- Pain running from the neck down the arm to the hand
- Tingling or numbness in specific fingers
- Weakness in the arm or hand
- Manual clumsiness: dropping things, difficulty buttoning
- Unsteady gait or a sense of imbalance
- An electric sensation down the back on bending the neck
Procedures
Surgical treatment of neck pain and cervical disc disease
The procedures that may be indicated for this condition. Which one applies to you — if any does — is decided on your imaging and your examination.
Peripheral nerve surgery
Release of entrapped nerves, repair of traumatic injuries and resection of nerve sheath tumours.
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Decompressive laminectomy
Enlargement of the spinal canal for lumbar stenosis, removing lamina and hypertrophied ligamentum flavum.
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FAQ
Questions patients ask about neck pain and cervical disc disease
Red flags: do not wait for an appointment
Loss of consciousness, the worst headache of your life, sudden weakness on one side, difficulty speaking, a seizure, projectile vomiting, or loss of bladder control together with back pain. Go to an emergency department immediately and call (664) 104-9153.
Isolated mechanical neck pain without arm or hand symptoms is usually managed first with physiotherapy, postural care and analgesia. MRI is indicated when there is arm-radiating pain, a neurological deficit, signs of myelopathy, or failure of treatment.
They matter for comfort and can aggravate or ease mechanical pain, but they neither cause nor cure a cervical herniation. Looking for a comfortable sleeping position is reasonable; expecting a pillow to resolve root compression is not.
If tingling wakes you in the early hours, affects thumb, index and middle fingers and improves on shaking the hand, it points to the carpal tunnel. If pain runs from the neck down the whole arm and changes with neck movement, it points to the cervical spine. Examination and electromyography clarify it.
It can be a sign of cervical myelopathy — spinal cord compression — and should be assessed promptly. That symptom, along with an unsteady gait, is not one to wait out.
Neurosurgical consultation
Bring your imaging and settle the question
One consultation with your MRI or CT in hand is worth more than ten internet searches. Book by phone or through the form and you will be told what is there, what it means and what your options are.