When doctors decide what type of back surgery to do, does cost play a role? For example, my mother was going to have surgery and was told she could either have her spine fused or a disc replaced in her back, depending on what the doctor ultimately decided.

Although cost is not the main factor in deciding what type of surgery might be done, if the doctor has the choice between two types with similar outcomes, chances are he or she will go with the lower cost option.

For example, in a recent study of one type of disc arthroplasty (replacement), researchers compared the operating room (OR) cost, blood loss in the OR, and recovery time after surgery between the replacement and the older fusion type surgery. The researchers found that although the outcomes between the surgeries were similar, the cost of the implant could be significantly lower than with the fusion.