In 1993, Will, a 49-year-old pipeline welder, began experiencing back pain. At first he believed that the pain was due to normal muscle fatigue from hard work, but many years later the pain had still not subsided and had become increasingly worse. By 2002, Will was experiencing higher levels of pain in his lower back and pain extending down the back of his left leg. Over the course of a year this pain developed into a stabbing sensation in my thigh, which came and went like electric shocks. Will was having a hard time with sudden bouts of debilitating pain, so he decided to take time off from work and see his doctor. Will's first visit to his primary care doctor consisted of testing his flexibility and checking his back muscles for stiffness and spasms. after performing weight-bearing exercises. Will's doctor found signs of muscle strain, so he sent him home with a prescription for ibuprofen and advised Will to take time off work to rest. Taking things easy after two weeks off work hadn't improved Will's condition, so he went back to his doctor. X-rays were taken and the doctor discovered signs of arthritis in Will's spine. The doctor wasn't sure of his diagnosis, so he referred Will to a spine therapy specialist for physical therapy in the hope that the pain could be relieved after strengthening his back muscles. If your back pain still does not improve after taking these measures, you may consider a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of your lower back. Low back pain is the fifth most common reason for all doctor visits in the United States, [1] so when doctors see patients with cases of chronic low back pain like Will's, they typically suggest medications...... half of paper ......your important consideration is that artificial disc replacement surgery requires an anterior approach through the stomach and can cause serious damage to important blood vessels, intestines, and components of the urinary system. Will's herniated disc is located in the lower lumbar region, and these vertebrae have a low degree of flexion compared to the vertebrae higher up in the spine. This means that replacement discs won't help much with maintaining mobility, and lumbar fusion won't reduce flexion to that great a degree. The experience of the surgeon should also be taken into consideration, and at present there are few surgeons who have adequate experience with total disc replacement. These reasons lead me to believe that a lumbar fusion would be the safest surgery for Will, providing adequate pain relief and would not limit his range of motion enough to warrant disc replacement..