Degenerative disc disease -- a common condition as we age -- refers to wear and tear on the ligaments in our back and neck, the discs that normally act as cushions between the bones in the spinal cord.
Now, doctors are testing a new minimally invasive procedure for fusing discs and alleviating pain.
Bob Fanucci is used to seeing the world from hundreds of feet in the air but after 30 years as an electrical lineman, the job took a toll.
“You know, you’re in a bucket or you’re on a pole. Climbing is a lot of looking up,” Fanucci said.
Eventually, Fanucci had symptoms he could no longer ignore.
“It just was keeping me up at night kind of pain. And I couldn’t look up, and I couldn’t turn, and the crunching noises,” Fanucci expressed.
X-rays of his neck showed damage to three discs of seven, putting pressure on the nerves.
Orthopedic spine and neck surgeon Dr. Rahul Shah felt Fanucci would benefit from surgery— entering the front of the neck to remove the damaged discs and replace them with an implant.
Fanucci was also part of the FUSE clinical trial.
Shah is testing a minimally invasive way of delivering a small titanium implant through a tiny tube in the back to stabilize the spine without making long incisions.
“The muscles bounce back quicker, better, and their function, we believe, is better,” Shah said.
Fanucci started feeling the difference almost immediately.
“I got the full range of motion, I could drive, I could start physical therapy. It just astounded me that the results were that dramatic,” Fanucci said.
Shah said ideal candidates for the study are people with significant pain requiring surgery, and problems with three levels of neck vertebrae.