ABSTRACT
The majority of patients with degenerative disc disease are treated nonoperatively. If conservative treatment fails, surgical intervention may be considered for the appropriate patient. Arthrodesis, or fusion, is an accepted surgical option for the patient with isolated degenerative disc disease in the cervical or lumbar spine. While successful fusion eliminates motion at a potentially painful level and offers the ability to restore intervertebral height and alignment, it does have significant limitations. For example, successfully achieving a surgical fusion is not always correlated with relief of pain. Further, there is the risk of pseudarthrosis, and potential morbidity associated with bone graft harvest, as well as concern of adjacent segment disease. Intervertebral disc arthroplasty is evolving as a surgical alternative to fusion.
