The True Cost of Spinal Surgery in Roseville: The Dollars and the Risk of Failure

In the last article we talked about the epidemic of spine surgery in the U.S. and the factors leading to that increase (namely the Opioid Epidemic and huge financial upside for hospitals and orthopedic surgeons).

I mention a study conducted by Dr’s Deyo and Cherkin which compared international rates of back surgeries and discovered that the rate of American surgery is unusually excessive and expensive and directly attributed to the supply of spine surgeons: Their conclusion: “The rate of back surgery in the United States was at least 40 percent higher than any other country and was more than five times those in England and Scotland. Back surgery rates increased almost linearly with the per-capita supply of orthopedic and neurosurgeons.”!

When combined with surgical costs, medications, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), rehabilitation and disability, the average spine surgery case approaches $100,000 or more. It is hard to understand because the most effective treatments for sciatic pain in Roseville (where I practice) ranges from $1000 (a course of chiropractic and therapy) to about $5000 (non-surgical spinal decompression and therapy) total, patient back to work and either totally out of pain or significantly reduced (80% improved or better) without side effects or risks.

Unfortunately, insurance companies don’t like these safe bulging disc treatment alternatives in Roseville and the rest of the country. When you ask your doctor about treatment for back pain in Roseville or about a spinal specialist in Roseville they will not recommend non-surgical spinal decompression. Why? Usually because they don’t know about it, or have a pre-biased attitude toward anything that a chiropractor in Roseville might do.

So what accounts for these staggering costs? Doctors and hospitals are making huge profits off unsuspecting patients who are not told there may be better, cheaper and safer ways to solve their back pain with Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression in Roseville and chiropractic care in Roseville. Back surgeries are among the most expensive kind of treatment, and these costs do not include hospitalization, imaging, drugs or medications. Just take a look at these per-surgery costs (again, this is just for the surgery itself!) for various types of back surgeries:

Dr. Deyo found the mean hospital costs alone for surgical decompression and complex fusions ranged from $23,724 for the former to $80,888 for the latter. When combined with surgical costs, medications, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), rehabilitation and disability, the average spine surgery case approaches $100,000 or more. The direct costs are astronomical and may reach as high as $169,000 for a lumbar fusion and $112,000 for a cervical fusion!

Fortune 500 companies spend over $500 million a year on avoidable back surgeries for their workers and lose as much as $1.5 billion in indirect costs associated with these procedures in the form of missed work and lost productivity, according to a two-year study by Consumer’s Medical Resource (CMR). The study, “Back Surgery A Costly Fortune ” found that one out of three workers recommended for back surgery said they avoided this unnecessary procedure after being given independent, high-quality medical research on their diagnosed condition and treatment options. In addition, patients who refused surgery and opted for alternative and less invasive procedures to treat their back pain reported experiencing healthier and more personally satisfying outcomes.

Treatment for back pain in Roseville or anywhere else in the country is big business. You have to choose your doctors and treatments wisely. Always ask yourself and your doctor, “Is there any other effective treatments for back pain, or treatments for sciatic pain in Roseville (or whatever are you live in) that are alternative to the traditional approaches of drugs and spinal surgery?”. And then, do your own research. Get on the web, look up spinal specialist near me, or non-surgical disc specialist in Roseville (of course, write in your own city!). Learn about the alternatives! Look for doctors who are well educated and experts in spinal disc conditions.

If you are in the greater Sacramento area and you want an honest second opinion and treatment alternatives for bulging discs, treatment for herniated discs, treatment for degenerated discs in Roseville, or treatment for sciatic pain in Roseville, please call us at The Roseville Disc Center at Twin Creeks Health at 916-781-2600 for a free consultation.