1. Basic Preoperative Information

  • This section covers general essential guidelines that every spinal surgery patient must know before arriving at KIMS Hospital. It ensures your body is prepared for anesthesia and safe physical positioning.
  • Precautions Before Surgery:
    • Stop taking blood-thinning medications (like Aspirin or Clopidogrel) 5 to 7 days before surgery under medical supervision.
    • Do not eat or drink anything (including water) after midnight before your scheduled procedure.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Always use the “log-roll” method to turn or get out of bed to prevent twisting your spine.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Complete tissue healing typically takes 6 to 12 weeks.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Absolutely no heavy lifting over 3–5 kg, and completely avoid dynamic forward bending, twisting, or jerking movements for the first 6 weeks.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Ankle pumps and gentle deep-breathing cycles should be started in your recovery bed on Day 1.

2. Cervical Discectomy / Disc Replacement

  • This is a surgery on the front of the neck where a damaged or herniated cushion (disc) compressing a spinal nerve or the spinal cord is carefully removed. It is either replaced with a rigid spacer to fuse the bones or a flexible artificial disc to preserve your natural neck movement.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Report any sudden worsening of arm weakness or finger numbness to the clinical team immediately.
  • Precautions After Surgery:
    • Keep your incision clean and dry; do not soak the wound in a bath.
    • Wear your prescribed soft or rigid cervical collar exactly as directed by your surgeon.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Most patients return to light office desk work in 2 to 4 weeks, with complete structural recovery taking 3 months.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Do not lift objects higher than your shoulder level, avoid looking down at your mobile phone for extended periods, and do not drive for at least 4 weeks.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Highly controlled, gentle isometric neck exercises (pressing your hand against your forehead or the side of your head without moving your neck) to maintain safe muscle tone.

3. Minimally Invasive Cervical Discectomy

  • A keyhole version of neck surgery. Using high-definition microscopic visualization and specialized tubes, a small portion of a herniated disc is cleared away to relieve severe radiating arm pain without disrupting large neck muscle groups.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Secure a soft neck collar beforehand to keep comfortable during your travel home after discharge.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Avoid sudden, sharp turning or nodding motions of the head.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Fast recovery; pain relief is often immediate, and light physical routines can resume within 1 to 2 weeks. Full internal muscle healing concludes around 6 weeks.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: No running, high-impact gym exercises, or lifting objects heavier than 2–3 kg for 4 weeks.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Gentle range-of-motion stretching exercises for the neck, guided by a physiotherapist, starting around the third week.

4. Cervical Laminectomy

  • A decompression procedure to treat a narrowed neck spinal canal. The bony arch (lamina) at the back of the vertebrae is carefully removed to instantly open up space and relieve chronic pressure on the spinal cord.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Arrange for a family member to support you at home, as looking after yourself during the initial 2 weeks requires assistance.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Monitor your walking balance closely and notify the hospital if you experience any new clumsiness in your fingers.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Soft tissue recovery takes 4 to 6 weeks; complete structural remodeling of the bone requires 3 to 6 months.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: No overhead lifting, no vigorous physical activities, and absolutely no driving until your surgeon confirms your neck reflexes have fully recovered.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Gradual posture correction routines and scapular squeezing exercises to build support for your upper back and shoulders.

5. Minimally Invasive Lumbar Discectomy

  • A keyhole back surgery designed to treat severe sciatica or slip discs. Through a tiny incision, a specialized microscope or endoscope is inserted to remove the small piece of herniated disc tissue pressing on your leg nerve root.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Practice standard log-rolling techniques to prepare yourself for moving comfortably after your procedure.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Avoid sitting for more than 20 to 30 minutes at a single time during the first 2 weeks to keep pressure off the lower back.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Light activities can be restarted within 2 weeks, while full spinal stabilization takes about 6 to 8 weeks.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Strictly enforce the “No BLT” rule: No Bending at the waist, no Lifting over 4 kg, and no Twisting of the lower back.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Safe straight-leg raises while lying flat, along with short, frequent walks on flat surfaces to prevent scar tissue from forming around the healing nerve.

6. Minimally Invasive Lumbar Fusion

  • A keyhole procedure used to stabilize a weak, slipping, or degenerative lower spine. The worn-out disc is removed and replaced with a structural spacer, secured with precise screws and rods through small incisions to help the bones grow together into one solid block.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Ensure your home environment is clear of tripping hazards like loose rugs or electrical cords before your admission.
  • Precautions After Surgery: If prescribed, wear your lumbar brace whenever you are out of bed or walking.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Bone fusion is a gradual process taking 3 to 6 months, though walking comfort improves significantly within 4 weeks.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: No heavy lifting over 5 kg, no bending over to touch your toes, and avoid sitting on low, soft sofas that compromise your spinal alignment.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Focused core stabilization exercises (such as pelvic tilts and gentle abdominal bracing) overseen by a spine therapist to build internal support.

7. Vertebroplasty and Kyphoplasty

  • Advanced, minimally invasive treatments for painful spinal compression fractures (often caused by osteoporosis). A medical needle is guided into the fractured bone to inject specialized bone cement to stabilize it (Vertebroplasty), sometimes utilizing a small balloon first to restore lost bone height (Kyphoplasty).
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Keep track of your bone density scores (DEXA scan) and ensure your regular osteoporosis medications are logged.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Avoid staying in a single position for hours at a time; change your posture frequently to prevent stiffness.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Pain relief is exceptionally fast, often occurring within 24 to 48 hours. The bone cement hardens fully within hours, allowing a return to standard routines in 1 to 2 weeks.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Avoid sudden heavy impacts, intense twisting movements, and lifting objects over 5 kg for the first month.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Gentle walking program combined with progressive back-extensor strengthening to optimize your long-term posture.

8. Open Thoracolumbar Fusion

  • A highly structural procedure to treat severe spinal instability, complex deformities, or significant trauma. Through a standard incision, the mid-to-lower back bones are permanently joined together using solid titanium screws, rods, and bone grafts to eliminate painful movement.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Optimize your nutrition and protein intake under your care team’s guidance to support healthy bone healing.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Inspect your back incision daily for any signs of redness, fluid drainage, or localized swelling.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: A extensive healing path; full bone fusion and solid stabilization require 6 to 12 months.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Absolutely no lifting over 3 kg, no intense physical strain, no bending to pick up items from the floor, and avoid traveling over bumpy roads.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Gradual, low-impact walking protocols that steadily increase in duration, along with basic, safe lower-extremity stretches.

9. Robotic Spine Surgery

  • The peak of modern spinal safety. Dr. Savitr Sastri BV utilizes a specialized robotic arm combined with advanced 3D computer navigation to place spinal hardware and implants with sub-millimetre precision, protecting delicate nerve structures.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Identical to minimally invasive spine surgery
  • Precautions After Surgery: If prescribed, wear your lumbar brace whenever you are out of bed or walking.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: Due to smaller muscle incisions, recovery is accelerated; light movement can resume in 2 weeks, with structural stabilization wrapping up in 2 to 3 months.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Avoid heavy lifting and intense rotational movements of the torso for 4 to 6 weeks.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Early activation of the deep abdominal and lower back stabilizing muscles via gentle, controlled kinetic exercises.

10. Spinal Injections

  • A targeted, non-surgical outpatient procedure performed under real-time X-ray guidance. Anti-inflammatory medication (steroids) and local numbing agents are injected directly into the compressed nerve space (Epidural) or small joint facets to calm down severe back, neck, or leg pain.
  • Precautions Before Surgery: Arrange for someone to drive you home after the procedure, as your legs or arms may temporarily feel slightly heavy or numb.
  • Precautions After Surgery: Rest quietly at home for the remainder of the injection day.
  • Timelines to Full Recovery: No downtime required; patients return to normal daily routines within 24 to 48 hours. Pain relief can last for several weeks to months.
  • Specific Activity Restrictions: Avoid strenuous workouts, heavy lifting, or long-distance travel on the day of the injection.
  • Rehabilitation Exercises (In Brief): Once the injection calms the localized nerve inflammation, you can safely advance into targeted physical therapy to treat the underlying spine condition.