Shorty,

Spineuniverse.Com this site has all kinds of information that you will find valuable. A torn disc is exactly what is sounds like, your disc has been torn, probably not it two pieces or you would be on the surgery table already. It is hard to say what the surgeon will do, cold be anything from nothing to a fusion with hardware. Look up the website and you will find a ton of information for you. Btw how old are you? I had my first back surgery at 22. Good luck to you.

Hey thanks for the site . I am 25 and so far the doctor is reccommending surgery for the discs ,that is the neurogologist said he was going to push my surgeon for surgery on the disks. What kind of back surgery did you have done? Also on the pinched nerves which I didn't even know there was a surgery for that.

I had what you will probably end up having. My first surgery was a huge success. I didn't listen to my doctors is why i've ended up in the shape i'm in. I had a decompression (removal of the discs) and a fusion from l4-s1 with bak cages. I wish you the best of luck. Btw when they remove the disc you no longer have a pinched nerve, the disc is causing the problem. You may also have a laminectomy, I did, which opens up the area where your nerve exits. Good luck

another thing I thought of is by your wording it seems that the neurosurgeon isn't the doctor that is actually doing the procedure. If that is the case find a spine specialist, either a orthopaedic or neuro surgeon to do the procedure, not just anybody can operate on your spine successfully. Another procedure that may be an option is a discectomy, where they trim the herniation away but leave the remainder of the disc in place, this way you won't have to have a fusion. Whatever you do, research, ask questions, and make sure your surgeon is a spine specialist.