James, Fish, D.O. orthopedic spine surgeon affiliated with Hughston Clinic, preformed the first two level cervical disk replacement in Rutherford County, Tennessee at TriStar StoneCrest Medical Center. This procedure is less invasive that other surgical procedures and reduces the likelihood of additional surgical needs, especially in young patients.

"Continuing to bring alternative spinal surgery to our suburban-based hospital is exciting for TriStar StoneCrest Medical Center and Rutherford County," stated Dr. Fish.

"Every patient that enters our doors is different, which is why TriStar StoneCrest Medical Center continues bringing alternative spine surgery options to our community," said Dr. Fish. "We have to be able to provide the best treatment, surgical or non-surgical, for each patientbased on THEIR pathology."

Dr. Fish elected to perform the second level cervical disk replacement on this specific patient because he found significant disc herniations, pressure on the spinal cord and nerves at both levels. Providing surgical options that allow the patient to return to light activity right after surgery and resuming all normal activities - even vigorous exercise - within six weeks was extremely important to Dr. Fish.

The patient had tried therapy, medication, and injections. Unfortunately, these conservative management options failed to relieve the ongoing and worsening neck and arm pain, which begin limiting the patient's way of life. In addition, the patient elected to have the disc replacement procedure in lieu of the two level cervical fusion because he wanted to maintain motion throughout the entire cervical spine.

"In a young person such as this patient, doing a two level fusion will result in a collapse, which is like a tire going flat." said Dr. Fish. "I wanted to spare those levels, stop the disk herniation that was causing pain due to pressure on the spinal cord and nerves, and avoid futuresurgery for this patient as best I could."

Cervical disc replacement surgery aims to remove a damaged disc in the spine that is causing pain and replace it with an artificial disc. Dr. Fish was able to access the damaged discs in the patient's spine through a small incision without disrupting the surrounding musclesand ligaments. During this challenging multilevel procedure, two adjacent problematic discs were removed and replaced with two artificial devices.

The artificial cervical disc replacement reduces deterioration of adjacent segments of the cervical spine, restores normal neck movement, allows for faster recovery and earlier neck motion after surgery, and eliminates the need for a bone graft or hardware used in spinalfusion surgery.

Dr. Fish recognizes the need for bringing new services and capabilities like the two level cervical disk replacement to the community.

"This procedure, in addition to the other advanced technologies, allows us to offer our patients a local choice for a variety of specialized spine treatment options right here in our community," he said. "The Spine Surgery Institute at TriStar StoneCrest is committed to providing our patients the highest level of care and helping them achieve the best outcomes in a specially designed setting closer to their home and family."