Back surgery (spinal surgery) at Spire Leeds Hospital

At Spire Leeds Hospital, our orthopaedic (bone and muscle) consultants and neurosurgeons have wide experience in performing back surgery in our clean and modern facilities. They’ll offer you a treatment and recovery plan that’s personalised to you, to relieve your symptoms and help you get back to your everyday activities.

We have many expert nurses and physiotherapists who’ll provide you with the aftercare you need to make a full recovery.

At Spire Leeds Hospital, our consultants are highly skilled at performing back surgery for a variety of conditions. Your consultant will be able to recommend the best type of surgery for your needs. This may include one or more of the following:

• Discectomy – to remove part of a slipped disc and relieve associated symptoms
• Laminectomy – to remove part of a vertebra to relieve pressure on the spinal cord
• Spinal fusion – to remove pressure, strengthen and stabilise your back with screws and rods

We’re able to offer surgical techniques and innovations that have been designed to improve outcomes. If your consultant thinks it’s right for you, they may perform a minimally invasive back surgery. This usually means a faster recovery time while still achieving the same outcomes. There are several minimally invasive procedures offered by our consultants. They’ll discuss this with you if it's appropriate for your condition.

Synthetic bone substitutes are also available which means your consultant doesn’t need to remove bone from elsewhere in your body to fuse your vertebrae – this is only occasionally offered where appropriate.

At Spire Leeds Hospital, we have clean, modern facilities, including three operating theatres with laminar flow. These theatres regulate air flow to reduce the risk of infection.

Getting here

Spire Leeds Hospital is situated just off Leeds' main A6120 ring road, approximately three miles from Leeds city centre. The hospital is accessible via public transport (bus) or we're 15 minutes by car from the city centre and the mainline railway station. We have free on-site parking for you and your visitors.

Your consultations

During your consultations, you’ll meet one of our expert consultants who’ll:

• Discuss your medical history
• Recommend tests and scans if required, such as an X-ray, an MRI or a CT scan, so they can look at your back in more detail
• Discuss which type of surgery you’ll need for your condition and what it’ll involve
• Explain about the general anaesthetic and how it may affect you

All of your consultations will take place in one of our 17 consultation rooms which are all accessible making things easier for you if you have difficulty walking. These consultations give you an opportunity to ask questions and get advice about what’s best for you.

Once you’ve decided to go ahead with back surgery, your consultant and your physiotherapist will explain your recovery plan.

When you come in for your operation, you’ll typically be with us for between one to four days. You’ll stay in one of our large, private en-suite ward bedrooms, which has a wardrobe for your belongings and TV, radio and WiFi.

If you’ve come with a friend or family member, they’re welcome to wait in your room while you have your operation.

On the day of your back surgery, you’ll meet your surgery team and anaesthetist. Your anaesthetist will administer the general anaesthetic, which will send you to sleep for the operation.

After surgery, you can begin your recovery in your private room. All our rooms have:

• TV
• Window
• Armchair
• WiFi
• Wardrobe

It’s normal to feel some pain or discomfort after back surgery, so to make your recovery easier, you’ll be given:

• Medications to help you manage pain, prevent infection and reduce the risk of clotting
• Sessions with one of our physiotherapists, who'll give you an exercise plan to help you get active again, plus a guide to how long your recovery will take

Your consultant may also recommend a programme of post-operative physiotherapy and rehabilitation at Spire Leeds to aid your recovery.

Although everybody’s different and you should always follow your consultant’s advice, here’s a typical recovery timeline for back surgery: