Bulging Discs in back?

[Blueface]

Originally Posted by mash

Agreed, surgery is the last resort.
I am a doctor with Worker's Compensation, and my brother is a rehab medicine doc. Both of us see back surgery failures.
My point about Derrick Thomas is this- to highlight what happened to him as a risk of back surgery is not applicable to someone who isn't immoblized. That is the biggest risk factor for pulmonary embolism.
If I cross a street, I may get hit by a car. The chances of that happening are different if I cross a side street compared to a freeway. So, to use his case as an argument about why someone shouldn't have back surgery needs to be put into context.

Well, let's see.
A doctor I am not but let's determine how bad my Derrick Thomas example truly is.

He died of a blood clot, post operative.

As a doctor, please clarify for me.
Is there a potential risk for terminal blood clots post surgeries?
Is this potential recently being determined to be more pervasive than previously thought?

I believe you will have to agree there is.

If there is, and Derrick Thomas got one post surgery to attempt to repair his post traumatic paralysis, how is my analogy so far off?