DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My husband has had terrible neck pain for a few years. It has gotten to the point where he cannot turn his head to either side enough to drive safely. We heard that replacing a disk in his neck might be the best option. Are there other things we should try first? And is this type of surgery safe?
ANSWER: Neck pain is a common problem, affecting many adults at some time in their lives. As in your husband's case, it can make simple activities, like driving a vehicle, painful or even impossible. The pain may involve just the neck and shoulders, or it may radiate down an arm. The pain can be dull or feel like an electric shock into your arm.
The Food and Drug Administration recently approved cervical disk replacement surgery as an alternative to spinal fusion. Like a knee replacement surgery, the artificial disk allows for full or nearly full range of motion after the surgery.
