Treatment of Cervical Spinal Stenosis

Cervical spinal stenosis is a discrepancy between the cavity formed by the vertebrae and intervertebral discs, and the spinal cord diameter. The term also implies the discrepancy between the intervertebral holes and the nerves and vessels within them. Put simply, in the case of spinal stenosis, the cavity inside the spinal column becomes so narrow that the spinal cord is compressed, the movement of the cerebrospinal fluid and blood circulation are impaired. As a result, myelopathy, radiculopathy and neurological symptoms appear over time.

Content

1. Causes of spinal stenosis
2. Symptoms
3. Diagnostics of stenosis
4. Treatment
5. Cost of medical treatment abroad
6. Organization of medical treatment

Causes of spinal stenosis

According to the cause of spinal stenosis, all cases of the disease are divided into congenital and acquired types. The acquired types may be further divided into degenerative and posttraumatic.

Spinal stenosis excludes spinal disc herniation. Although, in fact, they are also one of the reasons for the narrowing of the cavity formed by the vertebrae. However, hernia is a separate disease, as it is treated differently.

The causes of congenital cervical spinal stenosis remain unknown. Therefore, this type of disease is also called idiopathic.

The acquired types of the disease are the result of injury or dystrophic processes (osteochondrosis, rheumatic diseases, tumors, osteophytes, etc.).

There are also mixed types of this pathology. They are considered the most frequent. In this case, due to the predisposition to stenosis – initially a narrow canal formed by vertebrae and discs, the degenerative processes occur, which narrow it even more.

Symptoms

Clinical manifestations depend on several factors:

• at what level the canal is narrowed;
• the severity of its narrowing;
• is central stenosis (leads to spinal cord compression with the occurrence of myelopathy) or lateral (causes nerve root compression with the development of radiculopathy).

In the case of dynamic cervical spinal stenosis, the symptoms can appear only from time to time. If it is fixed spinal canal stenosis, they persist constantly and often progress over time due to increasing ischemia (compression of vessels with insufficient blood supply to the spinal cord and nerve roots).

Main symptoms:

• headaches;
• numbness of the scalp, neck, shoulder girdle;
• neck pain;
• muscle weakness, eventually the volume of muscle tissue decreases;
• in severe cases, impairment of the contractile ability of individual muscle groups.

Diagnostics of stenosis

Prior to the treatment of stenosis, the patient is thoroughly examined. The doctors assess his neurological status, as well as examine his reflexes, muscle tone, range of motion of the upper limbs, neck. His muscular strength is also tested.

A crucial role in the diagnostics of stenosis belongs to imaging methods. The doctors use either computer or magnetic resonance imaging. These examinations allow the doctor to find out at what level the compression occurred, as well as to determine the cause of stenosis, to carry out differential diagnostics of this disease with spinal disc herniation.

CT or MRI are indispensable diagnostic methods in the planning of surgical treatment for stenosis. Modern examination techniques provide an opportunity to accurately assess the condition of the vertebrae, to identify narrowed areas of the spinal canal, to assess the local blood circulation.

Treatment

To treat the diseases, doctors use the surgical operations aimed at the decompression of neurovascular structures. These are followed by the stabilization of the cervical vertebrae in a functionally advantageous position. Screws may be used for this purpose.

Conservative treatment may be used as well, but one should understand that drugs and procedures can only reduce the symptoms of the disease. They are not able to eliminate structural disorders in the spine. Only with the help of surgical methods it is possible to achieve sustainable results.

Types of operations:

• laminoplasty;
• laminectomy;
• laminectomy with additional fixation.

Cost of medical treatment abroad

The costs for treatment abroad may be higher than in your country, but people who can afford high-quality medical services usually travel abroad because spinal surgery requires skill from the doctor, high accuracy of diagnostic procedures, high-quality planning and surgical intervention. Many people go for treatment to Germany, despite the fact that the cost of treatment in this country is higher than in most European hospitals.

Best hospitals:

• Department of Spinal Surgery at the Hospital Neuwerk Maria von den Aposteln Moenchengladbach.
• Department of Adult and Pediatric Neurosurgery at the Charite University Hospital Berlin.
• Department of Neurosurgery and Interventional Radiology at the Beta Klinik Bonn.

The costs of treatment in these hospitals start from 11,000 euros. The cost of treatment abroad depends not so much on the chosen medical institution, but on the method used. Decompressive laminectomy is a usual practice. In this case, there may be required additional stabilization. Thus, the cost of treatment will be higher. In addition, the costs of treatment are determined by the number of segments. Stenosis can be monosegmental and polysegmental. The more segments involved in the pathological process, the more expensive the operation will be.

Organization of medical treatment

You can go for treatment to one of the recommended German hospitals and use the services of the Booking Health company for this purpose. We will select the best medical facility for you, which performs the required operations:

• with the best therapeutic result;
• using minimally traumatic technique for the patient;
• with minimal risk of complications;
• with high-quality postoperative rehabilitation.

The inpatient stage of treatment and recovery usually lasts about 1 week. Then the person will be restored on an outpatient basis. If necessary, he can either undergo rehabilitation in the same hospital where he was treated or move to one of the specialized rehabilitation centers.

The Booking Health company provides the following key services and benefits:

• You will be offered the best hospitals, which achieve the optimal results in spinal stenosis treatment.
• We will help to establish communication with your attending physician.
• We will prepare a treatment and diagnostic program taking into account previous examinations.
• The costs of treatment will be reduced for you, as we agree on the lack of coefficients and overpricing for foreign patients.
• We will book the appointment on the convenient dates for you and reduce the waiting time for the treatment program.
• We will help you to control the program at all its stages.
• If necessary, we will organize additional examination, treatment, rehabilitation.
• We will help you in buying and forwarding of medicines.
• We will ensure the control of invoices and the return of all unspent funds.

The Booking Health company will organize all the services for you. We will help you to prepare the documents for traveling abroad, we will book airline tickets and a hotel for you, we will provide a transfer from the airport to the medical facility.

Authors: Dr. Nadezhda Ivanisova, Dr. Farrukh Ahmed