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Artificial discs and disc replacement surgery
In-depth information about various types of artificial discs, clinical trials for artificial discs, and disc replacement surgeries for back pain relief

SECURE®-C Cervical Artificial Disc Clinical Trial (sponsored clinical trial listing)
February 28, 2006
The objective of this clinical trial is to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the SECURE®-C Cervical Artificial Disc for the treatment of symptomatic cervical disc disease as compared to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion. Read more...

CerviCore™ Intervertebral Disc Clinical Study (sponsored clinical trial listing)
February 17, 2006
The study is a multi-center, prospective, randomized controlled clinical trial that will compare the safety and effectiveness of the CerviCore Intervertebral Disc to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in the treatment of cervical radicular symptoms. Read more...

Cervical artificial disc clinical trial—PCM® (sponsored clinical trial listing)
October 31, 2005
This is a multi-center, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial comparing the safety and effectiveness of the Porous Coated Motion (PCM®) disc for the treatment of disc herniation(s) or other degenerative disc disease (DDD) in the upper (cervical) spine as compared to spinal fusion in the treatment of this disease. Read more...

Cervical artificial disc clinical trial—Kineflex-C™ (sponsored clinical trial listing)
October 6, 2005
This is a multi-center, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial comparing the safety and effectiveness of the Kineflex-C Spinal System to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion surgery in relieving the symptoms associated with degenerative disc disease in the cervical spine. Read more...

Lumbar artificial disc clinical trial—Kineflex™ (Sponsored clinical trial listing)
September 6, 2005
This is a multi-center, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial comparing the safety and effectiveness of the Kineflex Spinal System to the Charité Artificial Disc implant in relieving the symptoms associated with degenerative disc disease in the lumbosacral spine. Read more...

Lumbar Artificial Disc Surgery for Chronic Back Pain (Research article)
August 4, 2005
An artificial disc offers several theoretical benefits over spinal fusion for treatment of chronic back pain, including the potential for enhanced pain relief and to avoid premature degeneration at adjacent levels of the spine. This article provides an in-depth review of lower back disc replacement surgery and clinical trials. Read more...
By: Jack Zigler, MD

Disc nucleus replacement as an alternative to artificial disc replacement (Research article)
June 14, 2005
Disc nucleus replacement is a new type of surgery for low back pain from degenerative disc disease. Unlike artificial disc replacement, which involves replacing the entire disc, disc nucleus replacement surgery replaces just the inner part of the disc. Read more...
By: John Sherman, MD

Spinal disc replacement with the CHARITÉ Artificial Disc
Updated March 30, 2005
The goal of the CHARITÉ Artificial Disc replacement surgery is to reduce or alleviate chronic low back pain from degenerative disc disease by restoring the intervertebral disc height and neuroforaminal height while returning physiologic motion (similar to that of a healthy disc) in that segment of the spine. This artificial disc surgery requires complete removal of the unhealthy disc in order to implant the new artificial disc. Read more...
By: Paul McAfee, MD

All about the Charité artificial disc: now approved for use in the U.S.
November 17, 2004
Artificial disc replacement surgery is now available in the US for select patients with ongoing back pain from degenerative disc disease. As with any new surgical procedure, a number of factors should be considered before any patient has artificial disc surgery, including the surgeon's relevant training, the surgeon's skills, patient selection and appropriate indications, and more. Read more...
By: Stephen Hochschuler, MD and Paul McAfee, MD

Minimally invasive anterior approach to spine surgery
October 22 2004
The anterior approach to spine surgery allows the surgeon to have direct access to the degenerated disc without having to manipulate any nerve roots. Better correction of the collapsed disc to its native height can also be achieved by having a better leverage point to open the disc space. Read more...
By: Mark Mikles, MD and Jeffrey A. Goldstein, MD

Artificial disc for cervical disc replacement (Research article)
April 12, 2004
The intent of the artificial cervical disc device is to preserve motion at the disc space. It is an alternative to the use of bone grafts, plates and screws in pursuit of a fusion following removal of a cervical disc. Read more...
By: Mark Mikles, MD and Jeffrey A. Goldstein, MD

Cervical artificial disc clinical trial—PRODISC-C® (sponsored clinical trial listing)
November 25, 2003
A multi-center, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial comparing the safety and effectiveness of PRODISC-C to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion surgery in the treatment of symptomatic cervical disc disease. Read more...

Charité™ Artificial Disc (Sponsored clinical trial listing)
May 16, 2003
The Charité Artificial Disc is an investigational device limited by US (Federal) law to investigational use in the USA. Read more...

Update on artificial discs (Research article)
April 28, 2000
The main objective of an artificial disc is to replace a painful disc while maintaining the natural anatomical structure of the spine. The procedure is being developed as an alternative to lumbar spine fusion. Read more...
By: Stephen H. Hochschuler, MD

Artificial disc clinical trial—PRODISC (Sponsored clinical trial listing)
November 30, 2001
This is study is a multi-center, prospective, randomized, controlled clinical trial comparing the safety and effectiveness of PRODISC total disc replacement to spinal fusion surgery in the treatment of discogenic pain associated with degenerative disc disease (DDD) in the lumbosacral spine. Read more...

The information provided in this Clinical Trials listing section is designed to help patients find clinical trials that are ongoing in the field of spine medicine, and to provide information to help patients contact the centers conducting the research. op90.com is not involved in conducting any of these trials and is not promoting the trials or research.

This is a listing of industry-sponsored clinical trials that are actively recruiting patients. These clinical trial listings are not edited or peer-reviewed

Additional patient resources

Artificial disc replacement surgery vs. fusion surgery: Patients vote
January 20, 2006
Nearly half of op90.com's poll respondents said they are postponing spine fusion surgery in the hope of having artificial disc surgery instead. Artificial discs are designed to mimic the natural motion of the spine, so patients should have greater mobility than with fusion surgery. However, there are still unknowns about this relatively new technique. Read more...

Spine fusion surgery versus artificial disc replacement for low back pain: Back Pain Radio transcript
The decision to undergo a spine fusion surgery or artificial disc replacement surgery depends much on the patient’s anatomy, but also on the individual’s goals and needs. Read what Michael Janssen, DO, a Colorado orthopedic spine surgeon and member of op90.com, and Grant Cooper, MD, host of Back Pain Radio, had to say on the June 20, 2005 show. Read transcript...

Back-to-Back: Artificial discs and disc replacement surgery
In this section, patients share their advice and experiences with artificial discs, clinical trials and recovery from disc replacement surgery. Be sure to submit your own response as a resource for other patients considering artificial discs! Read more...

Back Pain Radio transcript: deciding on artificial disc replacement surgery
April 20, 2005
The decision to have artificial disc surgery is based on a combination of the patient’s history, response to conservative treatments and results from diagnostic tests, such as an MRI scan, x-ray and discogram. Read what Justin Tortolani, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon in Maryland and a member of op90.com, and Grant Cooper, M.D., host of Back Pain Radio, had to say about the decision process for when to have artificial disc replacement surgery on the April 18, 2005 show. Read transcript…

Degenerative disc disease – The doctor is in!
April 19, 2005
This section addresses patients’ questions about degenerative disc disease diagnosis and treatment, with answers provided by Peter F. Ullrich, Jr., M.D., an orthopedic spine surgeon and Medical Director for op90.com. Patients’ inquiries about degenerative disc disease were submitted by e-mail, and we’ve published answers to some common questions here. Read more…

New advancement in back care- op90.com Newsletter
Recently there has been a great deal of media coverage about the potential upsides of the artificial disc and disc replacement surgery, as well as new developments for other types of spine surgery. This newsletter highlights new surgical techniques (including artificial discs and IDET) to help patients decide on the best treatment options for their back problems. Read more…

Understanding disc pain - op90.com Newsletter
Pain generated by the spinal disc (from degenerative disc disease, a herniated disc, and other conditions) is quite often misunderstood. The goal of this newsletter is to help you better understand how the disc can cause pain and what’s important to know about it before undergoing treatment such as artificial disc replacement surgery. Read more...

New advancements in spine surgery - op90.com Newsletter
Several important new spine surgery technologies (such as artificial disc replacement) are in various stages of development and you may want to consider these when making any decision about your treatment options. As with anything new in spine surgery, most of the information on the following developments remains theoretical, and longer term studies and follow-up are needed to fully understand the potential risks and benefits of each procedure. Read more...

Please note that these additional patient resources (such as The Back-to-Back Forum and Newsletters) on op90.com are not peer-reviewed by the op90.com Medical Advisory Board. They are provided as additional resources for patients to learn from each others’ experiences and to gain information from our popular newsletters.


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