Patient Education
Lower Back: Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion (ALIF)
Anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) is a spine surgery that involves approaching the spine from the front of the body to remove disc or bone material from in between two adjacent lumbar vertebrae. The procedure may be performed either as an open surgery or using minimally invasive techniques.
What Is An ALIF?
Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion (ALIF)
Anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) is a spine surgery that involves approaching the spine from the front (anterior) of the body to remove all or part of a herniated disc from in between two adjacent vertebrae (interbody) in the lower back (lumbar spine), then fusing, or joining together, the vertebrae on either side of the remaining disc space using bone graft or bone graft substitute.
The graft material acts as a binding medium and also helps maintain normal disc height – as the body heals, the vertebral bone and bone graft eventually grow together and stabilize the spine. Instrumentation, such as rods, screws, plates, cages, hooks and wire also may be used to create an “internal cast” to support the vertebral structure during the healing process.
Depending on your condition and your surgeon’s training, experience and preferred methodology, an ALIF may be done alone or in conjunction with another spinal fusion approach. Please discuss your fusion approach options thoroughly with your doctor, and rely on his or her judgment about which is most appropriate for your particular condition.
Why Do I Need This Procedure?
There are a number of reasons your surgeon may recommend spinal fusion. This procedure is frequently used to treat:
- One or more fractured (broken) vertebrae
- Spondylolisthesis (slippage of one vertebral bone over another)
- Abnormal curvatures of the spine, such as scoliosis or kyphosis
- Protruding or degenerated discs (the cartilaginous “cushions” between vertebrae)
- Instability of the spine (abnormal or excessive motion between two or more vertebrae)
Patients with low back and/or leg pain due to degenerative disc disease, spondylolysis/spondylolisthesis, scoliosis, or other spinal instability that have not responded to non-surgical treatment measures (rest, physical therapy or medications) may be suitable candidates for an ALIF.
Patients without an excessive amount of spinal instability or slippage, and who have little to no spinal stenosis or nerve compression in the back of the spine, are generally the best candidates for an ALIF alone. However, ALIF as a stand-alone technique is usually not recommended for people whose bones have become very soft due to osteoporosis, or in patients with instability or arthritis.
Your surgeon will take a number of factors into consideration before recommending an ALIF, including the condition to be treated, your age, health and lifestyle and your anticipated level of activity following surgery. Please discuss this treatment option thoroughly with your spinal care provider.
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