Cervical Spine Revision Surgery

Revision of a cervical spine surgery can be needed for a variety of reasons: failure for bones to fuse (cervical pseudoarthrosis), malposition or failure of implanted hardware, inadequate decompression of the spinal cord or nerve roots, new or persistent neck pain or cervical radiculopathy or myelopathy symptoms, degeneration of neighboring spinal segments, infection, spinal instability, and others.

As part of my practice at Swedish Medical Center and my partnership with Craig Hospital, I commonly review and revise previous cervical spine surgeries that were performed elsewhere. Revision surgery can be complex and challenging, but I enjoy it, and the results are usually rewarding for the patient.

Management options for a failed cervical surgery might include ACDF, cervical corpectomy, CORUS cervical fusion, or posterior cervical fusion, among others. Each of these options has benefits and drawbacks. The right surgery for you will depend on your symptoms, your previous surgery, the number of spinal levels affected, and factors related to your medical history, age, smoking status, and spinal anatomy.

If you live near Denver and have ongoing symptoms or new problems after a cervical fusion or other surgery on your cervical spine, please consider seeking a second opinion and meeting me in consultation to learn more about your treatment options.