Endoscopic Spine Surgery

• Endoscopic Discectomy
• Endoscopic Foraminotomy
• Endoscopic Facet Rhizotomy

Spinal Fusion Alternatives

• XLIF Surgery

Pain Management Procedures

• Epidural Steroid Injections
• Radiofrequency Nerve Ablation
• Spinal Cord Stimulator

Diagnostic Procedures

• Facet Joint Blocks
• Branch Nerve Blocks
• Nerve Root Blocks
• Spinal Discography
• Spinal Probing
• Intradiscal Injection

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Spinal Discography

What Is Spinal Discography?

Spinal discography is a test used for the diagnosis of pain related to spinal disc diseases. A discogram is very useful when a patient has back or neck pain and the doctor is not sure where the pain is coming from. The purpose of a spinal discogram is to determine if the pain originates from a degenerated disc, and if so, which disc is causing pain.

IV inserted

Guide needle inserted

Discs tested

Spinal discography is simple and safe. It is done under x-ray guidance. A tiny spinal needle is inserted into the spinal disc while the patient is sedated. Discs injected include normal (healthy) ones and pathological (diseased) ones identified using MRI or CT images. The patient is awake during the injection. A dye (contrast) is injected into each disc and the patient is asked if the contrast provokes his or her typical pain. A normal disc usually does not produce pain whereas a pathological one typically reproduces the pain. The flow of dye in the disc is visualized under x-ray to determine if the patient has disc tears or disruptions.

With a discography test, an experienced physician can distinguish diseased discs from healthy ones and determine whether or not the pain is related to spinal disc diseases.

As with any other medical tests, the spinal discography test has false positive and false negative results. One should never rely on one test result to make decisions. To make a sound clinical judgment, the physician needs to review the patient’s medical history, and physical exam and diagnostic test results.

What Are the Risks of Spinal Discography?

As with any procedure, spinal discography has risks and side effects. The most common side effect is pain, which is temporary. Sometimes, the needle may touch a nerve root and cause irritation. But irritation caused pain generally gets better quickly. Additional risks may include infections, bleeding, and worsening of symptoms, although uncommon.

If you are allergic to any of the medications to be injected, if you are on a blood thinning medication (e.g. Coumadin®, Plavix®), or if you have an active infection going on, you should not have the spinal discography procedure.

The following are some spinal conditions that spinal discography can diagnose:

• Herniated disc
• Bulging disc
• Torn disc
• Degenerative disc disease