How do I treat cervical spondylosis? Do I need surgery? The treatment of cervical spondylosis is mainly divided into conservative treatment and surgery, and more than 85% of patients with cervical spondylosis can achieve good results through conservative treatment. So what kind of cases can be treated conservatively? For early cervical spondylosis, especially if the magnetic resonance examination of the cervical spine shows that the compression of the cervical spinal cord and nerve roots is not heavy, and the patients themselves feel that the symptoms of neck and shoulder pain, upper limb numbness and radiating pain are not very heavy, conservative treatment can be considered. The main methods of conservative treatment include adjustment of head and neck posture, such as avoiding long-term head bowing, doing cervical spine health exercises, and strengthening the muscles of the neck, shoulder and back. In addition, attention should be paid to keeping the neck warm. Because a cold cervical spine can trigger muscle spasm in the neck, the continuous tension in the muscles can lead to neck and shoulder pain, which can lead to cervical spondylosis. In addition, to maintain the correct sleeping posture, the pillow is too high will also change the normal physiological curvature of the cervical spine, which is equivalent to forcing the sleeper to lower his head all night, which can also cause the occurrence of cervical spondylosis. It can also be combined with the physical therapy, acupuncture, massage, traction and other treatments of Chinese medicine. In addition, oral medication is also a good treatment for cervical spondylosis. Commonly used medications include painkillers, muscle relaxants, nerve-nourishing drugs, and dehydration drugs. Through the comprehensive treatment of the above programs, good results will be achieved in general cervical spondylosis. So what conditions should be considered for surgery for cervical spondylosis? In fact, surgery should be considered when cervical spondylosis meets the following conditions: 1. First of all, there are symptoms of cervical spondylosis, such as neck pain, numbness and radiating pain in the upper limbs, inflexible fingers, inability to complete fine movements such as writing, tying buttons and holding chopsticks, unstable walking and a feeling of stepping on cotton on the soles of the feet, etc., which have been ineffective after more than 6 months of strict conservative treatment; 2. The patient’s symptoms seriously affect his or her daily life and the patient urgently wants to 3.Surgical indications exist on imaging, such as cervical instability, dislocation, cervical degeneration leading to more serious compression of the spinal cord and nerve roots; we should consider surgical treatment for the above cervical spondylosis conditions. Surgical treatment can release the compression of the spinal cord and nerves, restore their function, stabilize the spine and avoid further aggravation of the injury. I often hear patients in the clinic say that they cannot have surgery when they have cervical spondylosis, and that they will be paralyzed once they have surgery, and several of them are paralyzed in our village. After hearing these words, I’m sure you feel that surgery for cervical spondylosis is very risky, right? Surgery for cervical spondylosis does have some risks compared to surgery for lumbar spine. Because there are large blood vessels, spinal cord, nerves, esophagus, trachea and other important tissues in the neck, damage to any of them can have catastrophic consequences. But I personally think that the risk of cervical spine surgery is not very big. The risk of a surgery depends on the surgeon who operates on you, and with the escort of an excellent surgeon, the risk of cervical spine surgery is very small, and patients will be treated satisfactorily after surgery. So I recommend that you go to a major hospital for cervical spine surgery, and generally go to a tertiary care hospital to find a good spine surgeon. How long does it take to get well after cervical spine surgery? Cervical spine surgery is divided into anterior surgery and posterior surgery. The anterior surgery is a minimally invasive surgery, and you can usually get off the ground one day after surgery and be discharged home in 3-5 days, so the recovery time after anterior cervical spine surgery is very short. In addition, for young women, besides being concerned about the surgical results and safety, they will be highly concerned about the skin scars. The anterior cervical spine surgery is performed with a transverse incision, and intracutaneous cosmetic sutures are applied after the surgery. The incision heals well after a few weeks, and the surgical scar is almost invisible (as shown in the picture). Image.png The posterior cervical spine surgery is a little more traumatic than the anterior one, but it is also generally possible to get off the floor 2-3 days after surgery and be discharged from the hospital in about 5-7 days. So I recommend that you go to a major hospital for cervical spine surgery, usually to a tertiary care hospital, where cervical spine surgery is safe with the help of excellent surgeons and recovery is quick, so you don’t have to have any worries about cervical spine surgery at all. How much does it cost to do a cervical spine surgery that is safe and has a quick recovery? To be honest, this is a very difficult question to answer. Because there are so many different ways to treat cervical spondylosis, the major hospitals mainly take anterior, posterior and foraminoscopic surgery of the cervical spine. These surgeries involve the use of internal fixation materials, instruments, instruments, equipment, and the cost of surgery varies from hospital to hospital using different things and different surgical approaches. Anterior cervical spine surgery is done So I suggest that you do not focus on the cost of the surgery first, go to the doctor first, so that the doctor can develop a suitable surgical plan for you, and after the surgical plan is determined, your surgical cost is basically clear.