Clinical Investigation of the SB Charite III Intervertebral Disc Spacer.

Treatments for disc degeneration have historically included conservative modalities, such as rest, heat, electrotherapy, physical therapy, and analgesics to surgery. Currently, there are two main surgical techniques for treatment of disc degeneration: (1) nucleotomy or diskectomy, i.e., excision of part or all of the degenerated disc, which is typically performed for treatment of radicular syndrome in the case of disc herniation; and (2) spinal fusion, i.e., grafting bone between the vertebrae adjacent to the degenerated disc to eliminate articulation at the damaged segment, which is typically performed for treatment of degeneration together with instability and reduction of the intervertebral space. Rigid internal fixation may also be used to promote fusion.

The CHARITÉ Artificial Disc is designed to provide a new therapeutic option for treatment of degenerative disc disease as an alternative to spinal fusion to preserve function in the lumbar vertebral region. Each institution participating in the study was to treat the first 5 consecutive study participants with the CHARITE to as it involves a modification to the technique used for anterior fusion. Data will be collected on these "training" cases but will not be included in the comparison with the control (fusion) treatment.

Comparison: Outcomes for patients treated with the CHARITÉ Artificial Disc will be compared to outcomes for patients treated with anterior lumbar interbody fusion.