====== Lumbar spine instability treatment ====== {{rss>https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/rss/search/14ipX3fGPZTNtIvn4-i3GkbjmnHMweQcQMLVP2iok-n2OTwkDM/?limit=15&utm_campaign=pubmed-2&fc=20230522143355}} Depending on the severity and underlying cause, treatment options may include: Physical therapy: Exercises and stretches to strengthen the supporting muscles, improve posture, and enhance spinal stability. Pain management: Medications, such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), muscle relaxants, or epidural injections, may help manage pain and inflammation. Bracing: The use of lumbar support or bracing can provide temporary stability and pain relief. Activity modification: Avoiding activities that exacerbate symptoms and adopting proper body mechanics can help protect the spine. Surgical intervention: In cases of severe instability or if conservative treatments fail, surgery may be considered to stabilize the spine, correct structural abnormalities, or decompress nerve roots if compression is present. The classic treatment for [[Degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis]] is traditional total laminectomy decompression, bilateral laminotomy decompression, unilateral laminectomy bilateral decompression, and fusion, which are only considered in cases of [[lumbar spine instability]] ((Lurie J, Tomkins-Lane C. Management of lumbar spinal stenosis. BMJ. 2016 Jan 4;352:h6234. doi: 10.1136/bmj.h6234. PMID: 26727925; PMCID: PMC6887476.)) ((Shen J, Wang Q, Wang Y, Min N, Wang L, Wang F, Zhao M, Zhang T, Xue Q. Comparison Between Fusion and Non-Fusion Surgery for Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: A Meta-analysis. Adv Ther. 2021 Mar;38(3):1404-1414. doi: 10.1007/s12325-020-01604-7. Epub 2021 Jan 24. PMID: 33491158.)). The most diffused [[surgical technique]]s for [[stabilization]] of the painful degenerated and instable lumbar spine, represented by [[transpedicular screw]]s and rods [[instrumentation]] with or without [[interbody cage]]s or [[disk replacement]]s, require widely open and/or difficult and poorly anatomical accesses. However, such surgical techniques and approaches, although still considered "standard of care", are burdened by high costs, long recovery times and several potential [[complications]]. Hence the effort to open new minimally-invasive surgical approaches to eliminate painful abnormal motion. The surgical and radiological communities are exploring, alternative, minimally-invasive or even percutaneous techniques to fuse and lock an instable lumbar segment. see [[Dynamic stabilization]]