Lumbar procedure · Murphy, Texas
Microdiscectomy in Murphy, Texas
Microdiscectomy is a small operation with a narrow job: remove the herniated disc fragment sitting on a nerve root, and let the leg recover. Nothing more, nothing extra.
Microdiscectomy in Murphy
When a herniated disc fragment has parked itself on a nerve root and weeks of conservative care have not moved the leg pain, microdiscectomy is the operation designed for exactly that problem. Murphy patients are evaluated for it at the North Garland clinic and the Rockwall clinic — a short trip from anywhere in Murphy, whether you head southwest on Murphy Road or southeast via FM 544.
The name describes the method: discectomy, removal of disc material; micro, because the work is done through a small incision under a surgical microscope whose magnification and light let the surgeon distinguish disc fragment from nerve root with precision. The goal is deliberately limited — free the root — and that restraint is the operation's virtue.
Your nearest clinics
Murphy is served by two Choi Spine clinics — the North Garland clinic to the southwest and the Rockwall clinic to the southeast. Choose whichever is more convenient:
7217 Telecom PkwySuite 325
Garland, TX 75044 6705 Heritage Pkwy
Suite 203
Rockwall, TX 75087
Office hours: Mon–Fri · 8:00am–5:00pm
Book a visit
Call (972) 817-7450 to schedule an initial consultation or a second opinion at the Garland or Rockwall clinic.
Request consultationOther clinics: Forney · Greenville
About Microdiscectomy
Through an incision typically small enough to cover with a thumbprint, the surgeon reaches the spinal canal, gently moves the nerve root aside, and removes the herniated fragment compressing it, together with any loose pieces likely to follow. The healthy remainder of the disc stays in place; no implant is added and nothing is fused. In select cases an endoscopic approach — a camera-guided instrument through an even smaller opening — accomplishes the same removal, with the endoscope serving as a tool for visualization while limiting tissue disruption.
What microdiscectomy treats is lumbar radiculopathy (sciatica): the leg pain, tingling, and weakness of a compressed root. Its relief of leg pain is its best-documented strength. Back pain by itself, without a fragment on a root to explain it, is not an indication — a distinction Dr. Choi draws carefully, because operating for the wrong target is how patients end up with a successful surgery and an unchanged complaint.
Treatment options
The operation is a second step, not a first one. Most herniations improve without it, so a genuine course of conservative care — activity modification, medication when appropriate, guided therapy — precedes any scheduling, and injections performed by interventional pain specialists may be arranged by referral when pain blocks progress. The exceptions are progressive weakness, which argues for operating sooner, and cauda equina compression, which is an emergency.
Recovery is usually the pleasant surprise of spine surgery: most patients go home the same day, walk immediately, and find the deep leg pain gone or clearly retreating. Most patients are back at a desk within 1 to 2 weeks. For about the first 6 weeks the back is protected — no heavy lifting, and bending and twisting kept modest — while the disc's outer ring seals, after which activity rebuilds in earnest. The timeline is walked through fully before you ever schedule.
Second opinions in Murphy
If microdiscectomy has been recommended to you, a second opinion can confirm that the fragment on your MRI truly sits on the root your symptoms describe — and that conservative care has been given an honest chance. If something larger, like a fusion, has been proposed for a simple herniation, that second read matters even more. Murphy patients can book the review at either nearby clinic; bring the MRI images themselves.
Frequently asked questions
What does a microdiscectomy remove?
Only the herniated portion of the disc — the fragment that has pushed through the outer ring and is compressing the nerve root — plus any loose fragments in the disc space that could herniate next. The rest of the disc remains and keeps doing its job as a cushion. Working under a microscope through a small incision, the surgeon frees the root and confirms it moves without tension. Nothing is implanted, fused, or replaced.
How do I know if I am a candidate?
The classic candidate has leg-dominant pain in a single nerve root's pattern, an MRI showing a herniation at the level and side that explains it, and pain that has persisted despite a real course of conservative care — or weakness that is progressing. Back pain alone, or an MRI herniation that does not match your symptoms, does not qualify. Candidacy is really a matching exercise between your examination and your scan, done in person.
What is recovery after microdiscectomy like?
Most patients go home the same day and are walking immediately. The radicular leg pain is often dramatically better at once; incisional soreness and some residual tingling can linger as the root recovers. Desk work typically picks back up within 1 to 2 weeks. Lifting, bending, and twisting are restricted for roughly the first 6 weeks while the disc wall heals, then activity is rebuilt progressively. A full week-by-week picture is laid out before surgery.
Show all questionsShow fewer questions6 more ▾
Can the disc herniate again after microdiscectomy?
Yes — the disc wall's tear remains a weak point, and a further fragment can herniate through it. In a 2025 study, the outcome was stated plainly: “The reherniation rate was 5 %” (Kelbert et al., Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, 2025; PMID 40570611). A reherniation usually announces itself as returning leg pain after a pain-free interval, and many settle again with conservative care. Protecting the early healing period — the lifting and twisting restrictions — is aimed squarely at this risk.
Is microdiscectomy the same as endoscopic discectomy?
The goal is identical — remove the fragment, free the root — but the visualization differs. A microdiscectomy uses an operating microscope through a small open incision; an endoscope carries the camera to the disc through a narrower corridor. In some select cases endoscopic discectomy can be performed under sedation and local anesthesia rather than full general anesthesia. Anatomy, fragment position, and prior surgery decide which approach serves you best; neither changes the goal, which is safe decompression of the nerve.
Will microdiscectomy fix my back pain too?
That is not its promise, and you should be wary of anyone who makes it one. The operation removes pressure from a nerve root, so its reliable dividend is leg pain relief and a chance for strength and sensation to recover. Some patients' back pain improves as they become active again, but back pain arising from the disc or joints themselves is a separate problem with separate treatments. The expectation set before surgery is leg first — everything else is a bonus.
How long does the operation take and is it outpatient?
The procedure itself is comparatively brief — it is among the shorter operations in spine surgery — and most patients go home the same day once they are walking comfortably and pain is controlled with oral medication. A short hospital stay is arranged when medical factors call for it. You will need someone to drive you home and stay the first night; beyond that, recovery happens at your own pace at home, with walking encouraged from day one.
What are the risks of microdiscectomy?
Operating beside a nerve root carries risks worth naming: injury to the root itself, a tear of the dura — the membrane around the nerves — which is repaired when recognized, infection, bleeding, and the reherniation discussed above. There is also the possibility that leg pain persists if the root was damaged by compression before surgery. These risks are uncommon in experienced hands, and they are weighed against the trajectory of leaving a compressed, weakening root alone.
Where do Murphy patients have microdiscectomy evaluated?
The visit is at the North Garland clinic, 7217 Telecom Pkwy, Suite 325, or the Rockwall clinic, 6705 Heritage Pkwy, Suite 203. Call (972) 817-7450 and bring your MRI images. The visit confirms the fragment on your scan matches the root your leg describes, verifies that conservative care has had its fair trial, and — if both check out — explains the operation and its first six weeks in full.
Care pathway
MicrodiscectomyMinimally invasive surgeryDr. Jihoon ChoiRockwall · Garland · Forney · Greenville
Initial consultation or second opinion?
A small operation should solve a specific problem — and the evaluation should prove the problem is specific. Murphy patients can get that proof at the Garland or Rockwall clinic. Call (972) 817-7450 or request a visit online.