Cervical disc arthroplasty: general introduction.

Cervical disc arthroplasty is a relatively new motion-preserving technique for the treatment of symptomatic degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine. Unlike anterior discectomy and fusion, cervical disc replacement restores normal motion and a physiologic biomechanical environment to adjacent disc levels, thereby decreasing the incidence of adjacent segment disease. To date, cervical disc arthroplasty has been at least as effective as cervical fusion in providing symptomatic relief while reducing perioperative morbidity, eliminating the need for postoperative external immobilization, and allowing for earlier return to normal function. No significant complications have been associated with this procedure so far. Further study in the form of large, randomized, prospective studies is needed to make conclusions about the long-term efficacy of this procedure as well as to determine the patient populations that may benefit most from cervical disc arthroplasty.