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Spinal Surgery Infections

Every surgery carries with it an element of risk. Because spinal surgery involves activity near important nerves, your doctor will go over all possible complications that can occur with you if she recommends the procedure. The risks of spinal surgery include complications from anesthesia, damage to your spinal cord and infection.

  1. The Facts

    • Spinal surgery is performed for a variety of reasons. A diskectomy, in which a spinal disc is trimmed, may be needed in order to relieve back pain. If your vertebrae need to be stabilized, you might require spinal fusion surgery to give them the support they need. Spinal surgery can also be performed to remove tumors on or near the spine. As with any other surgery, when you undergo spinal surgery you are at risk of developing an infection.

    Infection

    • A spinal infection can occur anywhere in your spine, from the top of your neck to your lower back. Spinal infections can occur immediately after you undergo surgery. If this happens, the infection can develop in the incision site made by your surgeon or in the spine itself. A spinal infection can also develop years after you have recovered from your surgery. If left untreated, a spinal infection can cause chronic pain, paralysis and even death.

    Symptoms

    • Symptoms of an infection after spinal surgery depend on where the infection occurs. If the infection develops while you are recovering from surgery, the incision site might become red, swollen and hot to the touch. You could experience increasing levels of pain and fever. The incision wound might ooze pus. Symptoms of an infection in the spine itself include fever and pain that will not fade in your neck or back. Pressure on your spine will cause pain and you may experience weakness, paralysis or pain that travels down your arms and legs.

    Treatment

    • If you develop an infection in the incision site after spinal surgery, your doctor will begin your treatment program by prescribing antibiotics. If the wound is seeping pus, it may need to be reopened and drained. For an infection in your spine, your doctor can prescribe long-term antibiotics to combat it. If the infection is causing swelling that presses down on your spinal cord and causes paralysis, then surgery might be required to drain the infection.

    Considerations

    • Some risk factors make it more likely that you will develop an infection after spinal surgery. They include having a heart abnormality and being on intravenous medications. Different surgeries carry different levels of risk. A diskectomy has less risk of infection than spinal fusion. The more hardware used on your back during a surgery, such as rods and screws, the more likely you will develop an infection.

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