[JG81]

Hello everybody, I’m Jeff. After scouring the internet for information about cervical arthroplasty, I was very happy to find this site. You all are doing a great service for those suffering from spine-related pain.
However, I am concerned by the lack of information on this forum about the Bryan cervical disc. I saw Illinois neurosurgeon Dr. Taras Masnyk in June 2013, and he recommended a Bryan ADR for my C5-C6 disc. But, it appears Illinois only began allowing such procedures in October 2012.

I am very nervous about getting this procedure done, due to the lack of user experiences documented online. Most of the information I’ve found has come from medical studies and doctors. I have found almost nothing in terms of personal stories or experiences from the patients themselves. The patient experiences I have found are not comparable to my diagnosis.

I would love to know anything that anyone has to share about the Bryan disc. I have found all (or most of) the medical studies, which generally indicate an 80% to 92% success rate.

Please feel free to share anything you know about the Bryan disc.

I have a million questions, but some for you all would be:
- - Why does everyone seem to prefer the other discs available, instead of the Bryan disc?
- - Are there any unique risks posed by the Bryan disc that are not apparent with the competitors?
- - Does anyone know about “hypermobility” of the Bryan disc, which could lead to neck hyperextension? Is this true?

Being only 31, I would prefer to avoid a fusion, so ADR is really my only option besides nothing (except continuing chiropractic maintenance, which usually mildly improves my pain levels for 1-2 weeks).

I have constant pain on the right-middle side of my neck, which ranges from irritating to debilitating. I am considering surgery because the two times I injured my neck resulted from, 1) simply looking to my left in Sept. 2009, and 2) yawning in front of my closet in Oct. 2011. I am worried that some normal action will cause me further injury, and Dr. Masnyk claims my herniation is a 7.5 out of 10 in severity. That makes me think I need to act before it gets too much worse.

You can view my MRI analysis and the most poignant image via my signature, or just go to my photo album on this site.

I'm currently awaiting pre-certification for the surgery, so I am not yet sure if my insurance will cover it. I have been led to believe, though, that it will likely be covered. I am very lucky in that respect, having read many of your stories of struggles with coverage, and the great lengths people have gone to to get an ADR surgery. I also realize I am very lucky to have my injury contained to one level, so I feel a bit unworthy of posting my plight on this forum. But I figured I would try anyway.

Thank you very much for reading. I appreciate it. Also, thank you to anyone who is willing to respond.

I’m sorry this is so long. But I’m glad I found you all.

Note: The next post shows my MRI analysis, as well as the most poignant image.