Some Oregon patients have experienced Failed Back Surgery Syndrome. This affliction occurs when chronic pain continues after a back or neck surgery due to some issue with the procedure. Unlike the normal pain associated with healing, this pain often does not reduce during the healing process and may become worse as scar tissue builds around the surgical site. It is important to understand the symptoms and causes of failed back surgery and distinguish them from normal recovery.
Chronic and unusual pain is the most common symptom of failed back surgery. This could include extremely sharp or stabbing pain that does not go away. It may be accompanied by back spasms or numbness that extends down through the legs. One important sign is pain in a location other than where surgery was performed.
Failed back surgery has a variety of causes, and it does not necessarily mean that the procedure was performed incorrectly or that there was a problem during it. It may arise due to complications that are not always avoidable such as scar tissue around nerves, infection or a bone graft rejection. In other cases, however, the patient was not an ideal candidate for the procedure. This could have been the result of a misdiagnosis that resulted in a worsened condition.
Identifying the real cause of Failed Back Surgery Syndrome can be complicated. A patient must often have a variety of diagnostic tests and may require prolonged additional treatment or surgeries to correct the problem. It is possible that the syndrome arose because of a doctor’s mistake. In these cases, even a successful surgery can have severe complications. Patients who have been harmed as a result of this type of procedure may want to meet with a medical malpractice attorney to discuss their situation and see what options they may have.