New Device Treats Cervical Degenerative Disc Disease

An artificial cervical disc has been developed for the treatment of cervical degenerative disc disease, one of the most common causes of neck and arm pain.

The Prestige Cervical Disc consists of two main pieces of stainless steel that articulate against one another with a ball and trough articulation, in order to allow physiologic translation of the motion segment. After removal of the impaired natural disc, the artificial disc is attached to the adjacent vertebrae with bone screws.

The artificial cervical disc has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of cervical degenerative disc disease. The approval was based on laboratory and animal testing, and on a clinical study of 541 patients. The clinical study showed that the device improved neck and/or arm pain, and was as safe and effective as cervical fusion, the standard treatment for degenerative disc disease. As a condition of approval, the company will conduct a study over the next seven years to evaluate the longer-term safety and effectiveness of the device. The Prestige Cervical Disc is made by Medtronic Sofamor Danek (Memphis, TN, USA).

"The approval of this artificial disc means that people with cervical degenerative disc disease now will have another surgical option for treating this condition,” said Daniel Schultz, M.D., director of the center for devices and radiological health at the FDA. "This device will help relieve pain and restore function.”

Current surgical treatment involves removing a diseased or bulging disc in a patient's neck and fusing two or more bony vertebrae.


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Medtronic Sofamor Danek