Otto
Just a few musings on studies...
I don't know how valuable they are. Those that glorified Prodisc (like the ones my surgeon gave me) had interested parties involved, like the manufacturer, and exaggerated the benefits. Those that semed to condemn the hypermobility of the disc as leading to arthritis campared it to a healthy disc, which is silly because no one is replacing a sound disc with metal and plastic just to be avant garde. I can guarantee that artificial discs cause less arthritis than a collapsed disc. Long term studies are unlikely given the nature of rapidly changing technology; 15 years from now what we have will be obsolete. Here, patients stories may be the most helpful, although they, too must be taken with a grain of salt. My decision was based on a need to return to rigorous activity, and whatever the shortcominjgs of ADR surgery, the disc has withstood every challenge I've thrown at it. I can share what I've been able to do if you're intersted.
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