Photo Courtesy of Keith Allison
Tiger Woods to miss the rest of the PGA tour to recover from back surgery
Tiger woods announced Thursday on his website that he has undergone back surgery to alleviate pain in his lower back and legs.
The surgery was successful, according to the post, and it would take Woods at least 6 months to fully recover to compete, which means he will miss the rest of the 2016-17 PGA Tour season.
According to the post, Woods underwent a minimally invasive spine procedure called an Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion at the L5/S1 was performed. The damaged disc was removed and the collapsed disc space was returned to a normal level to relieve pressure on the nerve. The surgery will allow the vertebrae below and above the disc space where the damaged disc was removed to heal and fuse together.
This is Woods’ fourth back surgery in the last four years. He missed 16 months of competition from August 2015 to December 2016 after undergoing two surgeries in the fall of 2015.
Because of prior surgeries and herniations, the disc in the lower back severely narrowed (known as spinal stenosis), resulting in sciatica and severe back and leg pain.
Surgeries to remove a damaged disc are very common.
At the BioSpine Institute, we treat patients who have experienced leg and back pain due conditions, such as spinal stenosis or herniated disks. If conservative treatments to relive the pain fail to produce results, we may consider treatments options like disc replacement or a lumbar fusion.
If you have experienced severe pain in the leg and back, request an appointment today to see one of our board certified spine surgeons.
