Age: 65
Surgical practice: Colorado Springs Orthopaedic Group, Colorado Springs, CO
Procedure: eXtreme Lateral Interbody Fusion (XLIF®)
Surgery Date: March 20, 2013
Life Prior to Surgery: Four years ago, Phil began struggling with chronic back pain. Attempting to put an end to the suffering, he tried chiropractic care and even epidural injections. Neither method seemed to provide him with the long term-relief he needed.
“After a sciatica episode, I had to crawl across the floor to go to the bathroom,” he says.
Phil could no longer participate in many of the activities he loved, such as hiking, hunting, skiing, and snowboarding without lower back pain. While a family member who is a physical therapist explained that surgery would be the only solution for his degenerative disc disease, he remained apprehensive for a long time.
“My biggest fear about undergoing back surgery was that I would come out worse than I was before, or even paralyzed,” he says.
However, Phil knew he needed to get back to enjoying his life. “The first time I met my surgeon, he told me exactly what was going wrong and what I needed to do. I was extremely impressed with how much time he took to explain everything to me,” he adds.
Situation Today: In March 2013, Phil put his fears aside and underwent the XLIF procedure. After his surgery, he experienced some tingling in his foot and weakness in his left leg. However, he was up and walking within a few days. Phil recovered in the hospital for about a week before returning home. He was pleased to stop taking pain medications within two weeks of the surgery. He continued to use a back brace for the first month post-op.
Phil conquered tasks day by day, slowly building back his capabilities. He began with walking around the house, then out to the mailbox, and eventually worked his way up to walking his dog two miles a day! Now he is back to household chores like cleaning, changing the oil in his truck, weeding the yard, and working full time.
“I continue to walk my dog daily and can finally take pleasure in hiking again. I’m really looking forward to getting back to hunting this winter!” Phil says.
13-NUVA-1409