Quote:
Originally Posted by JJames
1) Dr. Yue seems to me to have moved away from the Activ-L and is strongly urging me to go with ProDisc.
2) I do not know if my med ins would pay for the hybrid operation, but I also don't think it is in my best interest - the fusion part concerns me greatly.
3) I must either wait for my medical insurance to pay or I need to show up at his office with a briefcase full of cash!
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1) Prodisc is FDA approved single level. Assume two-level Prodisc will be the first for two-level FDA approval, without any hard facts, just the way the publicly available trial data is laid out. Dr. Yue may also have filled his slots for the Activ-L™trial. Anything above a single-level in the FDA trial is an exception, probably requiring more paperwork than ...
2) Hybrid is ~OK from a limited layperson's view. I read at least one (1) ISSLS abstract and this one from 2008 EuroSpine:
Hybrid construct: fusion L5/S1 and disc arthroplasty L4/L5 for DDD, 3 years follow up
JC Le Huec MD PhD, S Aunoble MD, R Meyrat MD, C Tournier MD
Link (518 KB, .5 MB PDF)
3) Similar, volunteered to pay for the two-level ADR on this side to connect the dots, or $ signs, to do my process thing. The insurance coverage position was online in my case:
yes: two-level fusion
yes: one-level ADR
no: two-level ADR
no: hybrid fusion+ADR, partial coverage of fusion or ADR
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slackwater_sf