Artificial Disc Replacement Treatment in India

Pooja Malhotra, a 42-year-old software architect...

Pooja Malhotra, a 42-year-old software architect and mother of two, had been living with debilitating lower back pain for five years. Her active lifestyle, which included hiking and playing with her children, had become a distant memory. The pain, a constant ache with sharp, shooting pains down her left leg (sciatica), started after a minor car accident. Years of physical therapy, epidural steroid injections, and pain medications provided only temporary relief. An MRI revealed severe degenerative disc disease at L4-L5, with a collapsed disc pinching her nerve root. Her spine surgeon, Dr. Chen, explained that a spinal fusion was the traditional option but would limit her mobility permanently. He recommended a two-level artificial disc replacement as a motion-preserving solution, giving her the best chance to return to an active life without the stiffness of a fusion. Pooja was terrified but hopeful. The surgery went smoothly, and she was walking the same day. The initial recovery was challenging, with muscle soreness and strict movement restrictions, but the debilitating nerve pain was gone. Within three months, she was back to working from home comfortably. At six months, she took her first gentle hike. Now, two years post-op, Pooja is pain-free, plays tennis, and chases her kids without a second thought. Emotionally, she journeyed from feeling like a burden to her family, trapped in a painful body, to reclaiming her identity as an energetic, present mother and professional. The procedure gave her back her future.