Sciatica Surgery

Sciatica pain starts along the sciatic nerve, which runs from the buttock down the back of the leg. Many times, sciatica heals on its own. Conservative methods such as pain relievers can help you feel better. Learn more about sciatica.

However, sometimes the pain does not go away. If nonsurgical methods do not help or pain keeps you from participating in your everyday activities, your doctor may recommend surgery.

Procedures we may perform for sciatica pain:

Diskectomy or microdiskectomy

In some cases, the cause of the sciatica pain is a herniated (bulging) disk in your spine pressing on the nerve. This procedure removes the disk. 

A microdiskectomy is a minimally invasive procedure using tiny incisions. Our surgeons are at the forefront of these minimally invasive spine surgeries. We use a thin plastic tube to split the muscle and access the damaged disk, avoiding the need to cut the muscle. After a microdiskectomy, you could be back to your regular routine within two weeks.

For a traditional open diskectomy, we make a large incision through the back muscles to access and remove the disk. Recovery typically takes longer than with a microdiskectomy. We discuss with you which surgical method will offer you the best results. 

Laminectomy

We remove the lamina, a bony structure on the spine, to relieve pain. We can perform this as an open procedure (traditional laminectomy) using a large incision or a microlaminectomy, a minimally invasive procedure. We will discuss which surgical approach will offer you the best results. 

Lumbar microlaminotomy

We remove only a small portion of the lamina using minimally invasive techniques. This surgery relieves pressure on your nerves, alleviating sciatica pain.