[Michelle Maree]

Thanks for your replies..... I am finding the decision very difficult to say the least.
Everyone seems to have a different opinion on this one. And of course it really does depend on the individual case.
I have seen 2 renowned surgeons in Melbourne that use the Charite and both of them said no and recommended a Tlif. I dont know how many they have performed but I dont think it would be many. Their reasons were because of previous surgery,scar tissue, disc height, possible facet issues. I think they like pristine conditions because they may lack the experience but at the same time they may be right in being conservative. These may well be sound contraidications. I will wait on my opinions from Germany and am expecting a completely different opinion. So who do I then trust?

I sometimes try each one on for size and imagine how it would feel in my back to have either of these procedures done. It makes me realise that I do have a certain amount of motion in that segment that I would lose with fusion. For example when you walk you seem to move quite a bit in that area from side to side albeit not as much as above.What I want to know then is Do you completely lose all movement there when you walk? And it then gets transferred above?
Then I imagine having ADR in there. I find it really hard to imagine what having the height back wold feel like and then that extra movement after so long.My back has flattened a bit over th 2 .5 years and I dont know if my facets would cope with the extra lordosis.
If it didnt cause pain then I would be right. If it did cause extra pain then I dont know how id cope.
So maybe thats my answer. I have become more and more intolerant of pain as time goes on. I am just sooo sick of it!!!!
I would dearly love to hear from anyone who has had either procedure at
L5/S1.
But welcome everyones opinion.
Michelle.