Cervical spinal surgery

Risks for any anesthesia include the following:

• Reactions to medications
• Problems breathing

Risks for any surgery include the following:

• Bleeding
• Infection

Additional risks specific to spinal surgery include injury to the spinal nerves or spinal cord, injury to the blood vessels feeding the spine, and failure of the bone to fuse. Fortunately, these complications are rare but they are serious and you should discuss them with your doctor before undergoing surgery.

Images

Bone graft harvest

Vertebra, cervical (neck)

Previous Section

Spinal surgery Overview

Next Section

Spinal surgery Recovery

Review Date: 09/21/2006
Reviewed By: Jeffrey Kauffman, MD, Sacramento Knee and Sports Medicine, Sacramento, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org)