2 years post ACDF

[tjohnson08]

I had a bi-level ACDF on C5-C6 and C6-C7 two years ago. It was a success and my arm pain is gone. My question is that still today if I do too much manual labor then it "flairs up". I have been remodeling my bathroom the past could of days and the base of my neck and top of my shoulders is really sore. Last night my fingers were twitching. I have put the remodel on hold for now and am icing my neck , but am wondering is this is normal.

[tjohnson08]

Thanks for the replies. Before surgery I had severe pain down my right arm and hand. My arm would constantly spasm also. All of this went away the moment I woke from surgery. Over the past two years, I have found that when I do any intensive labor, like remodeling the bathroom, I tend to get really sore and have to take a few days rest with ice. I am just looking for comments from patients who have had ACDF and if these symptoms are common. Thanks kay290 for sharing yours.

[kay290]

The above is a copy and past answer. I am 6 months post-op , not as far along as you and I would say that yes, you still need to be careful with your neck. Poor  posture and lifting still bothers my neck in different ways, but nothing like before the surgery. If you have continued to have nerve damage that never really resolved you may have intermittant flare ups of that also. Did you have nerve damage prior to the surgery and what symptoms?

[Dr. A. Srivastava]

Thank you for your question. Although without being able to examine you I can not offer you the specific advice on diagnosis and treatment that you need, but I would try to provide you some relevant information about your health concern.

Usually, recovery from a ACDF procedure takes time (standard is six weeks) and as everyone is different it may vary as well.  Most of the times, one may experience neck and shoulder pain during or after the recovery period. However, essentially you should avoid prolonged sitting, lifting heavy objects, bending, twisting and excessive exertion, if you have continuous soreness. It is not like that you restrict all activities but you should gradually increase your physical activities over this period. Additionally, common complication of a discectomy is that there is a possibility that another fragment of disc will herniate and may cause similar symptoms. Therefore, endoscopic microdiscectomy is appropriate in some specific situations, and you may check this with your treating neurologist. Hope this helps.