Motion Preserving Disc Replacement

Patient selection & surgeon experience are critical factors

In 2007 Dr. Kerner became the first spine surgeon in the Hampton Roads area to be trained and certified to perform the cervical total disc arthroplasty procedure. In the years since, cervical disc replacement surgery has become widely adopted by the spine surgeon community as an excellent procedure for the properly indicated patient.

Proper patient selection is important for surgical outcome success in any procedure, but with newer technologies such as total disc replacement, patient selection and surgeon experience are critical factors to consider when considering this type of surgery.

Dr. Kerner has performed hundreds of these procedures and remains one of the region's foremost clinical authorities for this procedure. In the article on the side, Dr. Kerner discusses the efficacy and outcomes of cervical disc arthroplasty versus that of a cervical fusion.

The proven effectiveness of cervical disc replacement

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What is Total disc replacement surgery?

Total Disc Replacement surgery is a minimally invasive spinal surgery that is used to treat degenerated and damaged discs in the spine. In this procedure, the damaged disc is removed and replaced with an artificial disc. Replacing the degenerated disc with an artificial disc preserves the natural structure and height of the spine and also restores fluid movement and flexibility. The goal of this surgery is to preserve motion and ensure patients can return to activities.

Advantages of total disc replacement?

Like other minimally invasive spine surgeries, there are many benefits of total disc replacement. Some of these benefits include:

Reduces damage and degeneration of other discs
Reduced pain
Faster recovery time
Less post-surgical complications
Increases range of motion and flexibility post-surgery

Motion Preservation / Total Disc Replacement Surgery

There are many surgical solutions for treating DDD depending upon a patient’s diagnosis, physical condition, surgeon’s training, and other factors. Your surgeon will discuss the options that are available for your situation. One of those options may include an anterior fusion surgical procedure called Total Disc Replacement (TDR) or Anterior Cervical Discectomy Fusion (ACDF) for neck (cervical) conditions, Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion (ALIF) or Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion (LLIF) for low back (lumbar) conditions.

Complete disc replacement surgery is designed to relieve pain and improve patient outcomes by removing the degenerated disc and replacing it with an artificial disc. Lumbar Disc Replacement (LDR) is an alternative to spinal fusion surgery that fuses two vertebrae together to treat Degenerative Disc Disease. Compared to fusion, LDR provides increased range of motion and flexibility, is less invasive, and has fewer post-surgery complications.

Prodisc Patient Stories

Prodisc C is the most studied and widely used total disc replacement in the world and is an alternative to cervical fusion. With this procedure, the normal dynamic function of the spine is restored which also reduces pain.

This artificial disc restores the function of the spine through mechanisms that replace intervertebral discs that are located between the vertebral bodies encasing the spinal cord. These discs are vital to the proper functioning of the spine as they act as shock absorbers.

The main goal of Prodisc C is to maintain mobility in the affected intervertebral disc and to reduce extra loading on the adjacent intervertebral discs.

More Information

Prodisc L total disc replacement is an alternative to Lumbar Fusion. Used for over 25 years, Prodisc L is used to maintain spinal balance and motion in patients with Degenerative Disc Disease (DDD).

The previous gold standard for treatment of DDD was joint fusion which immobilized segments of the spine and has shown to increase the rate of adjacent level degeneration. Prodisc L was created to treat DDD while maintaining motion and improving spine stability. In fact, clinical data has shown that patients had 3.5 times more development of adjacent level disease with fusion than with Prodisc L.

With Prodisc L total disc replacement, recovery time is accelerated, and patients can resume their daily activities faster than other treatments like fusion.