In The News

The young woman rubbed her eyes. The numbers and letters on her computer screen jumped erratically. So did the world around her. This had happened before, but late at night when she was tired, never in the middle of the day. The light from the screen suddenly seemed too bright. 

The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA has received a $3 million gift from The Louis and Harold Price Foundation to support the spinal cord work of Dr. Daniel Lu, associate professor of neurosurgery and director of the UCLA Neuroplasticity and Repair Laboratory and UCLA Neuromotor Recovery and Rehabilitation Center. 

More than 80 percent of the 250,000 Americans living with a spinal cord injury lose the ability to urinate voluntarily after their injury. According to a 2012 study, the desire to regain bladder control outranks even their wish to walk again.

It was September, about three years ago, when Carl Link realized that something was seriously wrong with his health. For years, Link, then 36, had been dealing with chronic back pain that radiated out from between his shoulder blades and occasionally woke him up in the middle of the night. But recently, he had noticed some alarming new symptoms.

Surgical site infections (SSI) pose a significant risk to patients after surgery. The surgeons from UCLA Departments of Neurosurgery and Orthopaedic Surgery recently published their results demonstrating significantly lower rates of SSI involving spinal instrumentation within 90 days following surgery. We are delighted to share our results which are the lowest reported SSI rates in the literature. 

Dr. Daniel Lu -- Numerous news outlets reported Dec. 13 on the story of Brian Gomez, a young San Dimas man who broke his neck five years ago. Brian has regained some hand control due to an experimental device implanted In his spine by Dr. Daniel Lu, an associate professor of neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. Coverage included KTLA-TV (Los Angeles), WCBS-TV (New York), WJBK-TV (Detroit), KSWB-TV (San Diego), STAT News, the U.K.'s Daily Mail, United Press International, Becker's Spine Review, Spain's Canarias 7,  the Netherlands' RTL News,  Futurism and Mass Device. A UCLA social media video on Brian's story has been viewed on Facebook nearly 8,000 times, liked 370 times and shared 133 times so far.  The press release is also generating views on UCLA Newsroom.

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- People with severe spinal cord injuries rarely survive a month or two after an accident. Actor Christopher Reeve managed to live 15 years after his injury. One local teenager is also beating the odds. When it comes to severe spinal cord injuries, all doctors can do is stabilize the spine and hope for the best. Less than two years ago, it looked pretty bad for 18-year-old Cody Williams. 

Most Americans will experience back pain at some point in their lives. But while that dull ache or sharp pain is an all-too-common problem, many of the causes are a mystery to us until the discomfort kicks in. "Wear and tear on your discs is cumulative -- it all adds up," says Dr. Nick Shamie.

One morning back in December 2004 when 58-year-old Mark Casale tried to get out of bed, he fell to the floor. For an entire year afterward, the man who once routinely hiked 6-7 miles a day in the hills above his Southern California home could not walk a step.

Your doctor is more likely to reach for opioid drugs to treat your back pain if you live in the South.

Conventional back surgery for fractured vertebrae caused by osteoporosis and/or injury has been an unappealing option for patients because of the large incisions, substantial discomfort and lengthy recovery period. 

It was the tweak felt around the Southland. As Kobe Bryant writhed and wrenched through lower-back spasms during the Lakers' playoff loss against the Utah Jazz on Sunday, it was an injury with which many across California and the country could empathize.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski underwent successful surgery Thursday to relieve pressure on a pinched nerve in his neck -- one of the most common and costly ailments in the United States.

When Pacific Palisades resident Nancy Howell started having back pain two years ago, she had never heard of lumbar spinal stenosis, which most commonly affects the middle-aged and elderly. 

One of the perks of getting older is that you finally have more time to see the world. But while a weeklong vacation is rejuvenating, it can also take a toll on your body. Find out exactly what to do to avoid common vacation pitfalls and feel great on your next getaway. 

Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is the most common reason for spine surgery in people over the age of 65 in the United States.1 This program will cover the clinical issues around LSS: clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatments. 

SPENDING hours a day playing tennis may give young, elite players a competitive edge, but all that activity may come with a price -- spinal injuries. 

Project officials now expect that construction of the new Nethercutt Emergency Center at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center will be completed in late 2006, with move-in targeted for early 2007.

One would not pass without noticing the remarkable feat and successes of Jeffrey Wang in the field of medicine. Wang, a Chinese-American, is known to his peers throughout the nation as the inventor of the artificial disk used during spine procedure. 

With a neck brace, Gov. Benigno R. Fitial lighted up the room when he first sat on his hospital bed after a critical four-hour operation. It was a poignant moment according to First Lady Josie, describing how the chief executive showed signs of fast recovery. 

Mauro Sipin grew up not knowing how it feels like to have anything material that may be considered valuable-at least nothing fancier than three square meals a day. Deep in his heart, though, he knew he was headed to something bigger than he could ever hope for.

After 2-1/2 years of suffering with painful spinal stenosis, Molly Taguchi was losing hope. She had undergone various treatments, including epidural-like injections, but the pain in her legs and buttocks always returned. Then Dr. Arya "Nick" Shamie, a spine surgeon at Santa Monica-UCLA Medical Center and assistant professor of orthopaedic surgery and neurosurgery at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, entered the picture. 

New treatments can mean an end to pain. Sit up (straight!) and read on.
Your grandmother may have called it lumbago-that grabbing, aching, stiffening, or shooting pain that hits the lower back. But even if the name is out of fashion, the condition is no less common today: Over their lifetimes, an estimated 80 percent of adults will suffer from backache-some for a few days, some with recurrent bouts, and still others with pain that takes up residence and just never seems to leave.