Anterior Cervical Discectomy with Fusion (ACDF) recovery

i know that i have osteoartritis and they removed 2 bone spurs...and that my spinal cord was compressed...so i dont know if im going to take more time i am trying to stay positive but it is really hard..no it was just wear and tear no accident..i dont think because of my neck and back that i will ever get of narcotics ive been on them about 7 yrs now so its my life but i also have a collar on and i read some post where they dont wear a collar.the last visit i was told to do some neck shrugs and i have been doing that........thanks for your concern and hope you continue to get better

I really got sort of suicidal on all of those drugs - I just was so tired of the pain and being helpless. So please be very careful and check back in when you can. There are SO many people out there that are going through what we are going through, you have to take some comfort with us.

I had ACDF 3 levels one week and one day ago on April 20, 2011.  I had three Percocets in hospital on first day (they make me ill) and only Tylenol since.  Throat was pretty sore, but managable and really no problem now except stuff gets stuck sometimes passing a spot that feels "thick".  I was in hospital for two nights following surgery.  Laid around most of the last week at home and finally got stir-crazy today, so in my home office for last five hours.  I guess I am doing quite well, some pain.  Mostly in my upper middle back and "wings" usually late afternoon/evening.  I blame it on too much sitting.  Have been walking some, showering, fixing light meals, dressing and getting about on my own pretty much since I got home.  I have appreciated this thread being active; hard to find any that are!

Both my wife and I have had the surgery (fusion of 5, 6, and 7).  My wife had her surgery about 8 weeks ago.  Before the surgery, she had severe pain down her left shoulder arm and hand that was keeping her from sleeping and she quit her job as a pianist but still worked 6 hours a day from home on the computer.  She was totally out of it for 6 or so hours after the surgery and was in some pain when she came home, and the day after the surgery got around the house a bit, checking her email etc.   The next day she crashed though having a lot of pair and called the doctor for stronger pain pills.  She was uncomfortable and had to take it easy for 4 weeks and started back to work part time at 5 weeks and full time after  6 or 7 weeks.  She is glad she had the operation. 

I had the surgery 16 days ago (also with fusion of 5,6,and7).  My arms started falling asleep whild driving about a year ago.  I thought it was my heart and went in for a check up and everything was OK.  The falling asleep got worse over time and my hands were numb 24/7.  Then after a couple of months the pain begain in my arms, hands and fingers.  I would be drafting and have to throw the pencil down because of the cramping in my fingers. I also noticed a change in my drafting and printing etc and had to really concentrate on what I ws doing. It was hard to open doors, button shirts etc and I could not close my hands in a fist without severe pain.  Either one arm or the other was asleep while sleeping, depending on what side I was lying on. I was really looking forward to the sugery because of the pain and not sleeping.  The sugery went twice as long as expected as the surgeon had to clean out a bunch of bone spurs.  He said to my wife while I was in recovery "it was no wonder why I was in so much pain.  The surgery and recovery was quite easy for me and I was up and walking around the hospital floor 5 or 6 hours after the operation and felt pretty good. The doctor said the collar was optional and I found it hot so I stopped using it. The pain and aching was gone completely but my hands and fingers were still tingling and numb but I could use them. I was finally able to sleep in any position with my arms not falling asleep and realized I was having lots of dreams.  I think the month or so before the surgery I had very few dreams as I could not fall into a deep sleep.   My wife kept saying I was going to crash but I never did. I took it easy but was out visiting the neighbors the day after surgery.  I got tired of laying around and started back to work part time working from home after 4 days and was back to work full time 10 days after the sugery.  I told my boss I had to take it easy with no lifting or bending but ended up having to do some, nothing heavy, and noticed some of my simptoms coming back, a few pain aches here and there and my arms fell asleep a bit last night but nothing like before.  So I have tred to take it easy this weekend.  I have been told by some that it takes one to two weeks for the numbness to go away and others have said one to three months.  I am hoping that any of these scenarios will work for me, and I worry that the numbness will not go away.  I have been off the pain pills for 4 or 5 days now and am just taking the muscle relaxer one to two times a day and an advil for swelling.  The swelling is almost gone and I have pretty good movement of my neck and actually forget I had the surgery unless I am driving and have to look to the far left or right while changing lanes.  I'm not sure how the healing of nerves works, but hoping they can completely recover.

I hope that ny story may help others and I hope anyone with advice or experience with the numbness thing and healing will write to me and tell my what to expect.

 

I had my operation  c4/5,c5/6 and spinal fusion  on 21/06/11.I was in theatre 5hrs and came to feeling 100per cent better then befor.I came home 3 days later and my recovery has been virtually trouble free.Obviously I have had pain but most of it has been muscular rather then bone.I still have trouble turning my head,and some discomfort in my shoulders but nothing that the pain killers hasnt coped with.I have been told 3months befor i start lifting things or housework and at least 6weeks befor driving.OverallIim thrilled that I went ahead with the surgery and think the surgeons here in England have done a brilliant job.

Hello everyone...I just stumbled on this forum whilst researching ACDF surgery and all related to it.  I have read quite a few pages in this thread and felt i wanted to contribute.. I have had ACDF surgery in September, 2009.  Brief history...I injured my neck at work 13 yrs before and had re injured 5 times until they stopped me working in Feb 2009 and I pressed them to invenstigate further...I had a sore neck on and off over the years and also had headaches for at least 5 years almost all the time!!!!  I had C4/5 and C5/6 fusion, but without any titanium places and screws...Just discs replaced with cages and synthetic bone growth stuff and my own bone from osteophyes (bone spurs) put in the cages to encourage fusion.  I wore a hard coller 24/7 for 7 weeks!!!  Even in the shower (I had 2 of them)!!!!  I was also in a Rehab hospital for 6 weeks post op as i needed help with showering and collar changes.  I had some arm pain and numbness before my surgery that went away almost immediately!!  As for neck pain, it was a fair bit less at first, but only a few monthsor less and the pain was getting increasingly worse...basically i have never been pain free and now they have found that bone spurs have grown back so i am having surgery to remove them in 2 weeks....The thing with having nerves trapped for so long before my first Op, is nerves have a memory.....And when they have been trapped for many years, the less chance of getting complete pain relief.  Usually the newer the symptoms, the better chance of that going away!!  My arm pain is much worse now than the first time around...Im hoping and praing that this surgery takes that pain away!!!   I have to be realistic about my future..I know that i may never be pain free, I may have more levels that need fusion and that i may need pain meds to be able to cope with the chronic pain i have been living with!!!  But EVERYBODY is different...we cope differently, respond differently because we are all humans!!!  Take care evryone....Jassy.....

I injured my neck at work (herniated disks with spinal cord impingement (sp?)).  The injury occurred May 20th, and after several visits to physical therapy it was decided to perform an ACDF C5-7.  The surgery took place on Aug. 8th.  The post op pain was different, yet head aches at the base of my skull and upper shoulder pain were intense at times.  The tingling pins and needles were pretty much gone.  I've been back several times, and had a post op MRI.  The curve of my cervical spine has changed, and my head feels like a lead weight.  I have great difficulty sleeping through the night, usually a couple of hours followed by several cat-naps.  Movement aggravates the pain in my shoulders and upper C-spine, yet my surgeon says everything looks normal.  I'm taking hydrocodone 10/325's and they do take the edge off somewhat, but doesn't make it "comfortable", but does make it tolerable.  I've tried returning to work on light duty several times, but I have a very physical job (carpenter), and even light duty tasks are very painful.  I wonder if the continuing pain is psychosomatic, or if there is something really wrong.  I've been reduced to tears after physical therapy sessions, but I give it my all during these sessions.  I am used to pain due to my job, and have considered myself somewhat immune to it.  (I shot a small gauge nail through the tip of my index finger, entering the center of the pad and exiting the center of the fingernail, and immediately pulled it out, tied a strip of T-shirt oround it, and continued working without a bit of pain or soreness.  Despite that, it seems the pain from this surgery is lingering and brutal some days.  I can deal with it if I'm going nuts, but the lack of sleep and near constant pain are having a very marked effect on my family life and mental state.  The surgeon says that I shouldn't be hurting, and I'm starting to feel like a loon.  Not to mention the tenancy of Dr.s to consider anyone with chronic pain as a junky trying to score some pills.  I don't want to be treated like a criminal because I hurt, but that seems to be what it's turning in to.  Has anyone else had continuing pain (3 months post op) in their upper C-spine and between their shoulder blade and spine?

The very first surgery I ever had in my life (I'm over 40), I had ACDF C5-7 with plating the last week of May 2011.  So I am basically 5.5 mos post-op.  The curve in my cervical spine is amazing.  Never knew that's what it was supposed to feel like!  :-)

With the cooler weather change, however, I have developed a few familiar symptoms.  %-)  Arms falling asleep while I'm sleeping; numbness in my left hand and fingers, much like I had before the surgery; and my neck has started having shooting pains from time to time along the right side and sometimes the left side. 

I sleep with a contour pillow, sleeping on both the right and left sides equally, and laying on my back makes my arms fall asleep.  If I lay on my back, the pressure on my cervical spine is still too much for me when I use the contour pillow or a cervical pillow -- it needs to be a flat pillow.  Going to the hair stylist is agony -- I can't handle the wash basin. 

I had dizziness after the surgery for a good 4 months post-op.  Seems that is pretty well resolved.  Driving was really hard with the dizziness.

I also had visual disturbances starting at about 1.5 post-op months that will still manifest if I get too tired.  In my research, seems the visual nerves take a trip somehow through T1 back to the brain, so that's why the visual disturbances.

The Ortho surgeon cleared me only after 13 weeks with no need for further follow-up.  The good news is I am off all pain meds.  I take the occasional Tylenol for headache and have had only one migraine requiring meds post-op. 

Sure, my shoulders get tired.  I'm on the phone and PC all day for work.  On a really hard day, I will get the burning between the shoulder blades.  Sometimes I get a whopper headache.

What I noticed right off was the stress I felt at T1, right below the fusion.  I still don't know if I have done it, but I have tried to strengthen the muscles there to give T1 the extra support it needs, since it's taking on more stress.  My upper cervical vertebra are adjusting, as well.  I feel and hear popping at times, especially when getting out of bed.  Actually, more often than that, my neck just popped as I looked to the right. 

My strength is coming back.  Another good thing is that I am able to life heavier things again.  I have flown a few times since the surgery and am able to get my carry-on bag into the overhead bin.  It's better if a kind person helps me, but I can do it on my own.  I have been able to carry 35# containers of kitty litter and 20# bags of cat food into the house, as well.

So, with all this rambling, are all of these sensations normal?  I know everyone is different and recovers at different paces and in different ways.  I just wonder if all is well in there. 

Hello. I am currently scheduled for surgery on January 3, 2012. I will be having ACDF C5-7. Twenty plus years ago, I put my head into a windshield in a car accident. I was young and foolish and have neglected treatment until the last couple years. I have been going to a chiropractor on a weekly basis for nearly a year, when one day I started having tingling in my ring and pinky finger of my right hand. I ignored it for about a month when it occurred to me that not only had it been a month, but that I was starting to have severe pain (more than usual) in my neck, radiating down my right arm. I could no longer hold a book and driving was becoming excruciating. On the advice of my chiropractor, I booked an appointment with my rheumatologist and asked for full spine x-rays. She also referred me for a nerve conduction study of my right arm. It was clear by my x-rays that I had a compression situation with bone spurs in my neck. C-3 through C-7; C5/6 & C6/7 being the worst. The nerve conduction study verified that I had issues in the range of C6, so an MRI was ordered. It was plain to my naked eye that two of my discs were completely deflated and encroaching into my spinal column. My symptoms were becoming progressively worse as the tingles have given way to numbness in my right hand and the pain is incessant. I was referred immediately to a neurosurgeon. Long story short - traction made matters worse, causing major spasms in my long underutilized neck muscles (apparently I've been guarding for pain for a LONG time) and I am now scheduled for surgery.

I am nervous. I suffer from Firbomyalgia and Osteoarthritis. Have since my mid 20's. I've had many surgeries for various reasons in the last 10 years, and this is the first one to make me feel fear. Fear of every bad thing that is listed here. I appreciate the good outcome stories, but am practical and recognize that anything can happen. I'm still trying to get the best picture of how much time I will need to be off work (I have an administrative management position - desk job) and whether I need to file for temp disability or not. Anyone have any insight there?

Thank you for any feedback!!

I'm going to guess that the reason there aren't more "good" or positive posts, is because people who have had successful surgery rarely go looking for sites to post about it... It's far more common for those who are pre-surgical, such as myself or post and unhappily looking for answers to wander into a wonderful place such as this and begin a discussion.

Just my two cents.

Blessings,

Chris

Hi
I'm post op (surgery 11-15-11) four-level acdf with titanium plates and screws placed.    I was scared to death before the surgery.  Had it at Cedars Sinai Hospital - WONDERFUL! with a Dr from the Spine Institute- WONDERFUL!  I was in the hospital 3 days and the first two weeks I was pretty much in and out of bed, and a recliner with wonderful help from my husband.  Always had an Aspen neck brace and a separate brace to wear for showering.  I have had this neck brace 24/7 and am so tired of it.  Just want to be normal now, but my next visit with the dr is 1-11-12 so hopefully I can be taken off the brace, but I hear that recovery from a four level is more difficult for fusion, etc.

Anyway - only been on Tylenol since out of surgery.  Pain is better, but still there.  Numbness in two fingertips.  Occasionally sharp shooting pain, but overall better than when I went in. 

Personally at this point I consider this a success, but it is a long haul.  Starting back to work part-time due to the pressure on the neck, back and arms I just have to get the weight off when I get home.  Of course, no driving so having to be a burden on someone to take me and bring me home.

Would I do it again?  yes.   But be prepared for an extended recovery.   A recliner was very important to help me as was a heating pad for my neck and back. 

The swallowing is still an issue, bothersome, but I'm sure it will change and get better.  I just eat slower, drink more water at all times and take two swallows to get anything down.  Not so bad.  I'm not losing weight from it :(    My scar looks pretty darn good though.  Almost invisible.

It's a surgery.  Things are moved, cut, sewn, put in, etc.  I expected recovery time.  Be patient -- thats the most important thing.  Patience!

Good luck to all of you.   I hope your pain gets better.   I hope I get out of my neck brace soon.  We actually paid cash to the doctor for this surgery since his office didn't take any insurances, but he is that good.   Our insurance, thank goodness covered the hospital and other tests. 

I'm 53 years-young.  Hope some of my info helps someone.  Reading all of yours definitely helped me prior to the surgery and keeps me motivated. 

Hey all. Okay, I'm now nearly one month post ACDF C5-7 and I'm having a CT done today to make sure that everything is healing as it should be and swelling levels are appropriate. I KNOW I've done more than I should, and that has caused some ongoing pain/tingling at times - but I am working hard to find the balance...

As for the surgery and recovery in the first month - very little trouble with swelling in the throat. I found that for the first couple days (maybe 3-4 days MAX) that if I tucked my chin down when I swallowed, I actually had zero pain with swallowing. My surgeon was kind enough to follow an existing line in my neck for my incision so I believe once it's totally healed it will be very unnoticeable. The only real problems I've had are following instructions about resting and not doing anything and I pay for it if I overdo it. I get pain from the neck down my R arm to about the elbow and if I've been horribly bad (usually on the computer too long) I still occasionally get tingling in my fingers. But it all feels SO much better than before surgery, I know with time and more healing, that this was absolutely the right decision for me. Doc said that he got in there and the nerves were terribly red and angry and that I have far more arthritis than anyone my age should have (42), but sadly that is on par for my body.

I wish anyone considering this surgery the very best of luck. I have had MANY surgeries and each time approach the experience as an opportunity to FEEL BETTER - so I go in smiling, and keep the mood/atmosphere light and happy and all goes well each time. TRUST in your professionals and never hesitate to seek additional help as needed.

Blessings,

Chris

I am glad you are doing well...i see my neurosurgeon feb17th to get a second opinion i am anxious to see what he says. the last surgeon says i need a posterior stabilazation from a failed fusion c3-6 we will see what this one says good luck to everyone......

I am so thrilled to read these positive comments! I too and three weeks post op from ACDF at c6/7 and have had wonderful results. I've been itching to run and get back to playing tennis. I have overdone it at times and been sore but in the last week I've progressively seen positive results every day. My endurance is better, the soreness in my middle back - I guess from over compensating - is getting less and less. I never wore a neck brace...the neurosurgeon didn't require it. I've slept like a LOG and LOVING it! I don't think I've ever slept this great in my life. I feel like I've been given a second chance. Obviously I don't want to over do it and mess something up but I'm just DYING to get back to my normal life of running 20-25 miles a week and league tennis (doubles). Anyone think that's CRAZY or dangerous?? I've been walking since day three like 3-4 miles so I'm SOOO ready to move on to more strenuous stuff. :)))) Thanks again!

I had surgery on my c5/c6 and c6/c7 on January 25th.  My recovery is going very well.  I have been walking at least a mile to two every day after the first week.  I am in a soft collar when up and about.  Doctor said while laying around watching tv I didn't have to wear it all the time.  I still have some tingling in my left arm.  It doesn't seem as much as it was before surgery but still very noticable.  How long have others had numbness or tingling afterwards.  The area around the incision seems to still be slightly numb all around it, is that normal with everyone else.

Of course I am not to lift anything over a gallon of milk yet, but feel that I have regained the strength that I had lost in my left arm, but i am sure as I have read that I may not regain full strength for a while.

I seem to be able to turn side to side fine, but not able to bend head back very far at all.  Have others had the same and how long did it take to be able to bend your head back further.

I haven't driven yet, I was told to not even ride in a car for three weeks - which has been very hard!!!  I have rode but only about 5 - 10 miles, just to a family members house.  Riding was fine and feel that i could drive, but trying to be a good patient (which is very hard for me).  I am not taking pain pills only if have a restless night and can't sleep.  I am still taking the Soma (muscle relaxers) twice a day.  The only pain I really have now is after walking or up and about a lot.  The pain is in my shoulders.  All of my pain has been in my shoulders and my throat.  My throat was very sore for the first week or so.  I ate a lot of soup, ice chips, popsicles, etc.  Swallowing some of my meds was tough, I had to cut some of mine up.  I used heat on the pain in my shoulders which helped tremendously.

While i know everyone is different, my advise is to not sit around and not move, but yet get up and walk around as much as possible and if able start walking daily if not multiple times daily.  The walking will help build your strength.