Neck Pain

Chronic neck pain affects every aspect of your life, making it hard to work, sleep, and enjoy doing the things you love. At the Spine Institute of Florida, formerly Tampa Back Institute, M. Nicholas Perenich, DO, and the experienced team provide comprehensive solutions for neck pain. They offer conservative care, minimally invasive procedures, and complex spine surgery. The practice maintains offices in Tampa, Crystal River, and Dade City, Florida. Call the office closest to you today or book an appointment online to learn more about treatments for neck pain.

Why do I have neck pain?

Neck pain can be caused by acute injury, age-related degenerative changes affecting the spine, and underlying medical conditions. The pain most often results from a mechanical problem with the cervical spine.

The common causes of neck pain include:

• Muscle strain
• Whiplash
• Disc herniation
• Spinal stenosis
• Arthritis
• Radiculopathy (compressed nerve)

Poor posture is also a common source of neck pain. Keeping your head bent for long periods strains the muscles and ligaments. In time, the excess strain on the neck will affect the alignment of the bones that make up the cervical spine, resulting in chronic neck pain.

My neck pain is chronic. When should I see an orthopedic spine surgeon?

If you suffer from chronic neck pain and conservative treatments have failed to provide lasting relief, you should schedule an appointment with the orthopedic spine surgeons at Spine Institute of Florida. They also treat acute neck pain from athletic spine injuries and auto accidents.

When you come in for help with neck pain, your orthopedic spine surgeon completes a thorough evaluation. They want to fully understand your concerns and goals to create a treatment plan that leads to long-lasting results.

Your provider asks detailed questions about your neck pain, including when it started and the symptoms you feel. They review your medical history, complete a physical exam, and order diagnostic imaging tests to find the cause of your pain.

Which conservative treatments can relieve my neck pain?

The Spine Institute of Florida offers many conservative treatments to ease or eliminate neck pain. These include medication and physical therapy. The team also provides interventional pain procedures like epidural injections and nerve blocks.

Which surgeries treat neck pain?

When conservative measures fail to provide neck pain relief, the Spine Institute of Florida team will recommend spine surgery. They perform surgery using the most advanced techniques so that you receive the best outcome. 

Spine surgeries for neck pain include:

• Disc replacement
• Spinal fusion
• Foraminotomy (widening space for spinal nerves)
• Radiofrequency ablation (heating and destroying nerves causing pain)
• Endoscopic foraminotomy with neurotomy

They use minimally invasive approaches when possible and can perform the most complex spine procedures.

They also perform cervical decompression procedures, removing parts of the vertebral bone to ease pressure on a spinal nerve.

Call the Spine Institute of Florida today or schedule an appointment online with the spine surgery leaders.