- U.S. surgeons perform more than a half-million surgical procedures on the back every year.
- Back surgery is performed in the United States at a rate 40% higher than in eleven other developed countries and at five times the rate performed in England and Scotland.
- The majority of back surgeries are unsuccessful. (And some studies indicate the success rate at less than 60%.) Once you have back surgery, the chances of needing a second surgery are very high.
- Approximately 25,000 to 50,000 documented "failed back surgery syndrome" cases occur each year.
- A study published in the medical journal SPINE followed 109 patients for 12 years after back surgery. They found that satisfactory results were found in only 64% of the patients, while 28% complained of significant back or leg pain, and 7.3% had a repeat operation.
- Another, larger study, also published in SPINE, followed the long-term results of 575 back surgery patients. According to the study, 70% still complained of back pain. Of those; 83% experienced constant heavy pain, 45% residual sciatica, 47% received some form of disability, and 17% required a repeat surgery .
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