How Tiger Woods Won the Lottery in Back Surgery
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Tiger Woods’ Back Surgery Plano was successful, which allowed him to win the 2019 Masters Golf Tournament. You will be surprised to know that this was the most stunning comeback in the field of sports.
Tiger Woods had not played any major tournament for 18 months. His career could end due to spinal spams and sciatic pain. He decided to undergo a minimally invasive ALIF surgery. Previously, he had three lumbar discectomies from a posterior approach, which couldn’t do better for him.
What is ALIF?
ALIF stands for anterior lumbar interbody fusion, which is a surgical procedure performed by surgeons to treat different problems such as degenerative discs that cause pain in the back. The degenerative disc can also cause instability in the spinal area and deformities in the spinal curvature.
In the ALIF procedure, for example, Tiger Back Surgery, the surgeons work on the spine from the anterior – i.e. the front – and remove the spinal disc in the spinal, particularly in the lower spine, which is also called lumbar.
Then, the surgeons insert bone graft material into the space between vertebrae. This is a place where the surgeon removed the disc. This space is called interbody space.
The main goal of the ALIF procedure is the stimulation of the vertebrae and allows them to grow together – making one solid bone. This process is called fusion, which creates an immovable and rigid column of bone in the spinal section, where the problem occurs.
Is ALIF Surgery Right for You?
Just like Tiger Woods Back Surgery Plano, if your body requires an interbody fusion, your surgeon at the Minimally Invasive Neurosurgery of Texas will perform the ALIF procedure. You can receive ALIF if you have not undergone any surgical procedure in the last six months. Also, the surgeon will evaluate whether or not your body is spine is skeletally mature.
On the other hand, your healthcare professional will determine whether or not you are a good candidate for the ALIF procedure. Usually, surgeons don’t perform this procedure if you have other severe medical conditions.
For example, these conditions are infection or inflammation near the operative area, the sensitivity of patients to implant materials, and people with poor bone quality. Likewise, if you have any retroperitoneal surgery, endovascular stent graft, aortic bypass, and other indications, then this type of surgery is not for you.
ALIF Surgical Technique
In general, the surgeon performs the ALIF using anesthesia. An endotracheal breathing tube is placed, allowing the patient to breathe with the help of a ventilator during the procedure.
The surgeon will give you preoperative intravenous antibiotics. Then, he or she will position you in the spine – i.e., laying on the back. The surgeon uses a radiolucent operating table. Next, the surgeon will clean your abdominal area using special cleaning solutions.
The surgeon likewise will place sterile drapes. The entire team wears sterile attire – for instance, gowns and gloves so that a microbe-free environment is maintained.
Then, depending on the number of spinal levels that require fusion, the surgeons make an oblique or transverse incision to the left of the belly button. The surgeons gently spread apart abdominal muscles. Remember, they don’t cut the muscles.
Next, the peritoneal sac, which contains the intestines, is moved to the side. Likewise, the surgeons retract the large blood vessels to the side as well. Minimally Invasive Neurosurgery of Texas has qualified surgeons who then use special retractors to visualize the font part of the intervertebral discs.
Moreover, the surgeons remove the intervertebral disc – just like the procedure was performed in Tiger Woods Back Surgery Plano. The surgeons use biting and grasping tools to remove the disc.
Furthermore, they use special distractor instruments to restore the optimal disc height. These instruments are also used to determine the optimal size space that requires placing in the disc space. The surgeons also take fluoroscopic x-rays to confirm the correct position of the spacer. The total time for the surgery is 2-3 hours.
Conclusion
Wrapping up, the results of Tiger Back Surgery was successful. This treatment is excellent for degenerative disc diseases and symptomatic spondylolisthesis. Research studies have shown that ALIF surgery has a 97% success rate.
This is a minimally invasive technique that saved Tiger Woods from his career. Today, Woods is back in action and getting successes tournament after tournament.
Most patients have significant improvements and their back pain goes away quickly. They return to daily life activities just like Woods did after his Tiger Woods Back Surgery Plano.
