My Back Surgery Didn't Work: What Now?

It’s not surprising given the complexity of the spine and its component parts that surgery on the spine can be complex. Back surgery is often a last resort because it can be unpredictable, failing to relieve pain or causing new pain. 

It’s so common that it has a name: failed back surgery syndrome, or FBSS. Depending on the type of procedure, the risk of FBSS can be as high as 46%. At Metro Anesthesia & Pain Management, we can help you deal with the remaining or newly emerging pain. 

Today, we look at FBSS and your options when this condition affects your post-surgical expectations. 

Why do back surgeries fail?

Generally, the more complicated a spinal procedure, the more likely it results in FBSS. The best chances for success occur with first-time back surgery. 

With subsequent surgical revision for the same problem, success rates plunge dramatically, to the point where a follow-up surgery may not be your best option for treatment. 

Contributing factors to FBSS also include: 

• Preexisting medical conditions, including diabetes and obesity
• Specific diagnoses such as disc herniation or spinal stenosis
• Misdiagnosed conditions
• Lifestyle habits that affect general health, like inactivity and tobacco use

One strong risk indicator of FBSS is the presence of anxiety or depression in a back surgery patient. There’s a statistical correlation between active mental health issues and failed back surgery. 

Your back surgery didn’t work: What now? 

At Metro Anesthesia & Pain Management, we most often recommend a multi-modal treatment plan to control your symptoms after FBSS. Your custom pain management plan can include: 

Drug therapy

Most patients start with some level of medication, typically over-the-counter nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), though prescription versions may be recommended for severe pain. 

However, drug therapy isn’t a long-term treatment on its own, due to side effects that can sometimes exceed the benefits the drugs offer. 

Rehabilitation and physical therapy

Most joint problems benefit from alternate approaches to activities and strengthening support muscles. The spine is a long series of adjacent joints, so therapy to develop muscles of the back and core can transfer some of the load away from the vertebrae and compressed nerves. 

Rehabilitation and physical therapy aren’t usually short-term solutions, so we include these alongside other elements of your multi-modal recovery plan. 

Spinal cord stimulation

Sometimes, pain remains even after the physical problems of your back are repaired. A minimally invasive procedure to deliver tiny electrical signals to the nerves reporting pain can modulate nerve signals so the brain no longer interprets these signals as pain.

Spinal cord stimulation can dramatically reduce or eliminate your need for pain medication. 

Stem cell therapy

Some patients respond well to stem cell therapy as a way to speed the body’s healing mechanisms. Stem cells are physical building blocks of tissue, used as the raw material of healing. 

By directing stem cells to problem areas of your back, we can often reduce inflammation and pain. Stem cell therapy blends well with virtually every other treatment approach. 

These are just a few of your options for FBSS. Call or click today to book an appointment with Metro Anesthesia & Pain Management in East Des Moines and West Des Moines, Iowa.