Education hub — procedures & treatments
Spine Procedures and Treatments
Every procedure explained the way a surgeon would explain it in clinic: what it actually does, who it helps, what recovery looks like, and the risks worth asking about before you agree to anything.
Decompression
8 proceduresTaking pressure off a squeezed nerve or spinal cord by removing the disc, bone or ligament pressing on it — without fusing anything.
- Neck
Cervical Laminectomy
A surgery that removes part of the bony arch (lamina) covering the spinal canal in the neck to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots.
- General
Corpectomy
A spine surgery that removes one or more vertebral bodies to relieve severe spinal cord or nerve compression, then rebuilds the spine with a supportive cage or bone graft.
- General
Endoscopic Spine Surgery
A camera-guided, minimally invasive way to remove herniated disc material or relieve nerve pinching through an incision about the size of a pencil eraser.
- Neck
Laminoplasty
A motion-preserving neck surgery that hinges the lamina open like a door to relieve pressure on the spinal cord, without fusing the spine.
- Lower Back
Lumbar Foraminotomy
A targeted decompression operation that enlarges the bony exit channel (neural foramen) in the lower back to relieve pressure on a pinched nerve root.
- Lower Back
Lumbar Laminectomy
A decompression operation that removes part of the vertebral bone (the lamina) in the lower back to relieve pressure on crowded spinal nerves.
- Lower Back
Microdiscectomy
A minimally invasive spine surgery that removes the portion of a herniated lumbar disc pressing on a nerve root to relieve leg pain.
- Neck
Posterior Cervical Foraminotomy
A small, motion-preserving keyhole surgery that widens the nerve opening in the back of the neck to relieve a pinched nerve without fusing the spine.
Deformity Correction
1 procedureLarger reconstructive operations that realign a spine which has curved or tilted out of balance.
Disc Replacement
2 proceduresReplacing a worn disc with an artificial one, keeping motion at that level instead of fusing it.
- Neck
Cervical Disc Replacement
A motion-preserving surgery that removes a damaged neck disc and replaces it with an artificial one, relieving nerve or spinal cord pressure without fusing the vertebrae together.
- Lower Back
Lumbar Disc Replacement
An anterior surgery that swaps a worn-out lower back disc for an artificial one, aiming to relieve discogenic pain while preserving motion at that segment.
Fusion
7 proceduresJoining two or more vertebrae into one solid segment, used when a level is unstable, slipped, or painful with movement.
- Neck
Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion (ACDF)
A common neck surgery that removes a damaged disc through the front of the neck to relieve pressure on a nerve root or the spinal cord, then fuses the two vertebrae together.
- Lower Back
Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion (ALIF)
A lumbar fusion performed through an incision in the lower abdomen that removes a damaged disc and restores height and alignment with a large interbody cage.
- Lower Back
Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion (LLIF)
A minimally invasive fusion technique that reaches the lumbar disc space from the side of the body, avoiding the back muscles and spinal canal altogether.
- Neck
Posterior Cervical Fusion
Surgery through the back of the neck that relieves pressure on the spinal cord or nerves and locks two or more vertebrae together with rods and screws for lasting stability.
- Lower Back
Posterolateral Lumbar Fusion
A spine surgery that welds two or more lumbar vertebrae together by placing bone graft along the transverse processes and stabilizing the segment with pedicle screws and rods, often paired with decompression for pinched nerves.
- Pelvis
Sacroiliac Joint Fusion
A procedure that stabilizes a painful sacroiliac joint with implants, considered only after diagnostic injections confirm the joint as the pain source and conservative care has failed.
- Lower Back
Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion (TLIF)
A lumbar fusion procedure that removes a damaged disc through a one-sided approach along the nerve foramen, replaces it with a supportive cage, and stabilizes the segment with pedicle screws and rods.
Injections
6 proceduresImage-guided injections that both relieve pain and help work out which structure is actually generating it.
- General
Epidural Steroid Injection
A fluoroscopy-guided injection of anti-inflammatory medication into the epidural space to calm an irritated nerve root and create a window for rehab.
- General
Facet Joint Injection
A fluoroscopically guided spine injection that can confirm whether the small joints in the back of the spine are causing pain and provide temporary relief.
- General
Medial Branch Block
A diagnostic injection that numbs the small nerves carrying pain from the facet joints, used to confirm facet joint pain before radiofrequency ablation.
- Pelvis
Sacroiliac Joint Injection
An image-guided injection into the sacroiliac joint that both confirms the joint as a pain source and can relieve pain from inflammation.
- General
Selective Nerve Root Block
A precisely targeted, X-ray-guided injection that numbs a single spinal nerve root to confirm it as the source of pain and, often, to relieve that pain.
- General
Trigger Point Injection
An office-based injection into a tight muscle knot that helps relax the muscle, ease pain, and support physical therapy for back or neck pain.
Nerve Ablation
1 procedureUsing heat to interrupt the small nerves that carry pain from an arthritic facet joint, for relief that lasts months at a time.
Neuromodulation
2 proceduresImplanted devices that change how pain signals reach the brain, for chronic pain that has not responded to surgery or medication.
- General
Intrathecal Pain Pump
An implanted, programmable pump that delivers pain or anti-spasticity medication directly into the spinal fluid at a fraction of the oral dose.
- General
Spinal Cord Stimulator
An implanted device that sends mild electrical pulses to the spinal cord to interrupt pain signals before they reach the brain, used for chronic back and leg pain that has not responded to other treatments.
Vertebral Augmentation
1 procedureStabilising a fractured vertebra from the inside with bone cement, most often after an osteoporotic compression fracture.
This article is general education, not medical advice. It cannot account for your history, imaging, or examination — talk to a qualified clinician about your own care.
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