Report of my spine surgery

On September 18^th of this year, at age 88, I had a laminectomy: surgery to remove part of the bone (lamina) that was pressing on my spinal nerves and causing burning pain that ran from my butt to my ankle—basically sciatic pain. I’d had the pain for a couple of years or more, and it kept getting worse. My efforts to fix it myself through stretching and postural changes had no effect; neither did chiropractic and acupuncture treatments or two injections of steroids in my spine.

Of course I’d had an MRI, which showed the problematic area (L4-5). But the surgeon also ordered a series of spine X-rays in various poses. She doesn’t proceed unless the X-rays show a configuration—don’t ask me what—that she deems will ensure success. So, I gave the OK to go ahead. Still, it’s a scary prospect. Although you sometimes hear horror stories about spine surgeries, the people I’d talked to who’d had a similar surgery were enthusiastic.

Under general anesthesia, the surgeon made about a two-inch incision and used a drill to remove the offending bone parts. She also performed a bunch of other procedures to clean everything up. I have a copy of her report. It says things like “There was severe facet hypertrophy, which I drilled down also with the Anspach drill” (photo). The surgery started around 2:00. I was home by 6:00.

The pain relief was immediate and permanent (as of now, anyway). After about a week and a half, I started to gingerly do my regular exercises. At three weeks, I was back at yoga. At four weeks I was golfing. This surgery has changed my life. I no longer plan my days around pain or take any anti-inflammatories, which I’d been taking daily. I’m enormously grateful to my doctor and her skill. Sometimes we need doctors in our lives.

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