Cervical Disc Replacement vs Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion

Cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA) is an option for young patients with degenerative disc disease resulting in radiculopathy or myelopathy. This new surgical technique has been compared with the gold standard of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion with similar excellent outcomes in neurologic function and resolution of pain and other radicular symptoms. CDA is attractive for the young patient because it is a motion-sparing implant, and therefore it is thought to have a decreased risk of adjacent level disease. This article reviews the literature of CDA for clinical outcomes, rates of adjacent level disease, and complications associated with the procedure.