Your neck is comprised of bones (known as vertebrae), spinal cord, muscles, ligaments and blood vessels. The top seven vertebrae, beginning at the base of the skull, make up the cervical spine, which protects the spine and supports your skull. Between each vertebrae is a disc, which keeps the vertebrae from moving together under the weight of your head. Cervical Disc problems begin with overuse, trauma, or simple wear and tear.
When your neck vertebrae and cervical discs are functioning normally, they allow your cervical spine to bend laterally (side to side), to rotate (turn left or right) and to flex and extend (bend forward and backward). When the discs become damaged, they may lose water, causing the disc to thin, become less flexible, and offer less padding to absorb movement. The damaged disc may also develop tiny tears or cracks in its outer layer (annulus fibrosus).
- When cervical discs degenerate in this fashion, a number of problems may result, causing pain and discomfort:
- Disc Bulge or Disc Herniation (the inner disc is squeezed through the outer disc).
- Spinal Canal Stenosis, in which the spinal canal narrows and puts pressure (pinches) on the spinal cord and surrounding nerves.
- Myelopathy, in which the spinal cord becomes irritated, causing a loss of feeling and/or impaired movement.
- Radiculopathy, in which the roots of nerves become irritated or “pinched”, causing pain, weakness, and/or tingling along the arm and sometimes in the hand.
Mobi-C Artificial Disc
Prior to the invention of artificial discs, neck and spine surgeons would typically perform what’s commonly known as fusion surgery. In fusion surgery, the damaged disc would be removed and the empty space would be filled with a bone spacer or plastic implant to remove pressure on the nerves or spinal cord. A metal plate with screws was then attached to the vertebrae to keep the spacer in place and to restrict movement at that vertebra. This helped new bone grow between the vertebrae (fusion).
In modern cervical disc replacement, the unhealthy disc is removed and an artificial disc known as a Mobi-C Cervical Disc is inserted between the vertebrae. The Mobi-C implant fits entirely within the disc space, eliminating the need for the bone spacer, implant, plate and screws of fusion surgery. It offers significantly more motion compared with fusion surgery.
How do you know if Cervical Total Disc Replacement with the Mobi-C implant is right for you?
Your surgeon will determine your suitability for implant surgery based on your symptoms, your overall health, the health of your spine and neck and diagnostic tests.
Watch these videos for more information on Cervical Total Disc Replacement.