Overview
ACDF is a spinal fusion of the spine in which the surgeon removes the disc and any bone spurs pressing on the nerves or spinal cord through a small incision in the front of the neck, then places a cage filled with bone graft and secures it with a plate. It is most often recommended for Herniated Disc, Cervical Radiculopathy.
The procedure is performed through a anterior cervical approach under general and typically takes about 90 minutes. Most patients stay 1 night in hospital. The implants used are interbody cage and anterior plate.
Partner surgeons in Turkey perform this operation regularly in accredited hospitals, and Orthopedics Abroad coordinates imaging review, surgical planning, travel and follow-up so the medical pathway is the same as it would be at home.
Conditions treated
Who it's for
- Herniated Disc
- Cervical Radiculopathy
Good candidates
Good candidates for acdf have symptoms that clearly limit daily activities, imaging that confirms the diagnosis and have completed an appropriate course of non-operative treatment. General health, bone quality, body weight, smoking status and expectations are all reviewed during the medical record assessment before a surgical date is offered. Patients with uncontrolled diabetes, active infection or unmanaged cardiac disease are optimised first.
How the operation is performed
ACDF is carried out through a anterior cervical approach. In summary, the surgeon removes the disc and any bone spurs pressing on the nerves or spinal cord through a small incision in the front of the neck, then places a cage filled with bone graft and secures it with a plate. Variants include single level, two level, three level; your surgeon will explain which is recommended and why. The operation lasts approximately 90 minutes under general.
Recovery
You spend about 1 night in hospital and begin guided rehabilitation immediately. Expect the main recovery phase to last around 12 weeks, with continued improvement for up to a year. Return to desk work is usually possible within 2 to 4 weeks, and more physical activity is reintroduced in stages agreed with your physiotherapist. A written rehabilitation protocol is provided before you fly home.
Day 0–1
Stand and walk with support
Week 2–4
Desk work, light activity
Week 12+
Full activity as cleared
Risks and how they are managed
All surgery carries risk. Partner hospitals follow enhanced-recovery and infection-prevention protocols, and your surgeon will discuss the risks specific to your case before consent.
- Failure of fusion (pseudarthrosis)
- Adjacent-segment degeneration
- Screw malposition or hardware failure
- Infection (superficial or deep)
- Blood clots (DVT / pulmonary embolism)
- Bleeding or haematoma
- Anaesthetic complications
- Nerve or blood-vessel injury near the operative site
- Persistent pain or stiffness
Alternatives
- Comprehensive physiotherapy and core programme
- Pain management and injections
- Decompression alone when stable
- Microdiscectomy in selected cases
- Laminectomy in selected cases
What Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion costs
The contracted Turkey partner package next to approved self-pay benchmarks. Benchmarks are 20th–80th percentile ranges of approved records, normalised to USD.
Turkey package
$8,000 – $13,000
United States self-pay
$30,800 – $77,000
United Kingdom self-pay
$12,000 – $35,600
Germany self-pay
$10,700 – $32,300
Typical self-pay range by country
