In The News

UCLA Spine Center News

The UCLA Spine Center provides cutting edge diagnosis and treatments, and supports a staff of renowned physicians, surgeons and researchers.

WHY WAS HER VISION JERKY AND BLURRY IF THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH HER EYES?

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. Article on nytimes.com

UCLA RECEIVES $3 MILLION TO PURSUE RESEARCH ON MOBILITY AND FUNCTION FOR PATIENTS WITH SPINAL CORD INJURIES

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. Article on uclahealth.org

NEUROSCIENTISTS RESTORE SIGNIFICANT BLADDER CONTROL TO 5 MEN WITH SPINAL CORD INJURIES

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. Article on uclahealth.org

YOUNG DAD GOES FROM ALMOST PARALYZED TO STRONG AND PAIN-FREE

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. Article on connect.uclahealth.org

LOW INFECTION RATES FOLLOWING SPINAL SURGERY

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. Read more  |  View PDF

PARALYZED PATIENT RESPONDS TO A SPINAL STIMULATOR

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.

UCLA SCIENTISTS AWARDED $6 MILLION TO STUDY NEW WAYS TO RESTORE HAND MOVEMENT AFTER PARALYSIS

UCLA Newsroom -- The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering has awarded UCLA researchers Dr. Daniel Lu (Brentwood) and Dr. Reggie Edgerton (Bel Air) a $6 million, five-year grant to explore new therapies for the approximately 273,000 Americans living with spinal-cord injuries. Some 12,000 Americans suffer such injuries each year. Article on newsroom.ucla.edu

TEEN W/ SEVERE SPINE INJURY MAKING COMEBACK

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. View Spine Injury Article

BACK PAIN? 7 SURPRISING CAUSES

Huffingtonpost.com -- 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. Article on huffingtonpost.com  |  PDF version

X-STOP® ALLOWS MACHINIST TO FULFILL HIS RETIREMENT DREAM

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. View pdf and read more   | View video 

BACK PAIN CENTER FEATURE STORY

By Karen Pallarito
Your doctor is more likely to reach for opioid drugs to treat your back pain if you live in the South.  (pdf) more

NEW SURGERY FOR SPINE FRACTURES OFFERS IMMEDIATE PAIN RELIEF

by Ted Braun
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. (pdf) more

MANY CAN EMPATHIZE WITH KOBE BRYANT'S BACK SPASMS

by Jonathan Abrams and Alan Zarembo, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers
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. (pdf) more

KULONGOSKI'S PINCHED NERVE ALL TOO COMMON

by Don Colburn, The Oregonian
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. (pdf) more

UCLA DOCTOR USES IMPLANT SURGERY TO RELIEVE BACK PAIN

by Sue Pascoe, Staff Writer, Palisadian-Post
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. (pdf) more

HAPPY, HEALTHY TRAVELS
EXACTLY WHAT TO DO TO AVOID COMMON VACATION PITFALLS AND FEEL GREAT ON YOUR NEXT GETAWAY

by Shannon Rouss, freelance writer in New York City
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. (pdf) more

LUMBAR SPINAL STENOSIS SYMPTOMS & DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT OPTIONS, AND THE X-STOP® IPD® SYSTEM

by MEDTRONIC
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. (pdf) more

CONSTANT POWER PLAYS
YOUNG TENNIS PLAYERS WHO PRACTICE HARD FOR HOURS A DAY MAY SUFFER SPINAL INJURIES BUT SHOW NO SYMPTOMS, AN MRI STUDY FINDS.

by By Jeannine Stein, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
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. (pdf) more

SANTA MONICA-UCLA TODAY - NEW NETHERCUTT EMERGENCY CENTER, HOSPITAL ON THE HORIZON

by Editor, Ted Braun, Contributing Writers, Kim Irwin, Steven Wagner
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. (pdf) more

DR. WANG, A YOUNG MEDICAL INVENTOR

by Ulysses Sabuco
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. (pdf) more

GOVERNOR: PRAYERS PREVAILED

by Ulysses Sabuco
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. (pdf) more

NURSE RAISES THE BAR ON PHILANTHROPY

by Aldwin Farjardo
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. (pdf) more

NEW X-STOP IMPLANT PUTS A HALT TO PAIN

by Steven Wagner
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. (pdf) more

BACK TALK

New treatments can mean an end to pain. Sit up (straight!) and read on.
By Susan Ince -- 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. (pdf) more

** News links may expire without notice