Do You Really Need Back Surgery?

Aaron G. Filler, MD, Ph.D. 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.

Foreword ; Preface ; Disclaimer ; How to Use This Book: Two Dozen Visits to Your Doctor ; PART I: SPINE HEALTH ; 1. Acute, Chronic, and Recurring: A Quick Tour of Neck and 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 and Variations at Birth ; 9. Medical Imaging and Diagnostic Tests: X-Rays, Electrons, and Magnetic Spin ; 10. Recovery and Repair in the Nerves and Spinal Cord ; PART II: SPINE SURGERY ; 11. Without an Incision: Percutaneous Procedures for Diagnosis and Treatment ; 12. Surgery- Before, During, and After: Common Elements You Should Know About ; 13. Surgery to take the Pressure off the Nerves ; 14. Surgery Inside the Spinal Dural Lining ; 15. Spine Carpentry: History and Principles of Rebuilding the Broken Spine ; 16. Fixing the Cervical Spine: Surgical Approaches for the Neck ; 17. Thoracic Spine Operations: Surgical Approaches to Mid- and Upper-Back Problems ; 18. Lumbar Implants and Fusion: Major Surgeries for the Low Back ; 19. Genes, Designer Proteins, and Biomaterials: The Role of Biotechnology in Spinal Surgery ; 20. Risks, Outcomes, and Choices ; 21. Recovery after Surgery ; 22. Health Insurance and the Cost of Surgery ; Epilogue: Knowledge and Resilience ; Glossary ; Index