PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION

1. Please follow your post-operative brace instructions strictly. Not all patients who have undergone neck surgery require a brace. This brace will likely be needed for a minimum of six weeks, and often longer, depending on how the x-rays look when you come to visit Dr. Gross.

2. You should avoid all forms of tobacco and nicotine including smoking, second-hand smoke (near a smoking person), third-hand smoke (near a person who had been smoking elsewhere), and nicotine patches and gum. These can inhibit and even completely prevent your healing and fusion.