Artificial Disc Replacement
Cervical Disc Replacement
What Is Cervical Disc Replacement?
Cervical disc replacement is a motion-preserving spine procedure used to treat neck, shoulder, arm, and upper back symptoms caused by a damaged disc in the cervical spine. During the procedure, the unhealthy disc is carefully removed and replaced with an artificial disc designed to support stability while maintaining natural movement.
Modern cervical disc implants are made from strong, biocompatible materials, including titanium, cobalt-chrome, and advanced medical-grade polymers. These devices are engineered to function much like a healthy spinal disc, helping the neck move with greater comfort and control.
For many patients, relief begins when pressure is taken off irritated nerves or the spinal cord. Symptoms such as radiating pain, tingling, weakness, or numbness may improve as the nerve compression is addressed. Unlike spinal fusion, which limits motion at the treated level, cervical disc replacement is designed to preserve the neck’s ability to bend, rotate, and extend more naturally after healing.
Why Patients Choose Palm Beach Spine & Disc Replacement Center for Cervical Disc Replacement
Palm Beach Spine & Disc Replacement Center is designed for patients seeking advanced spine care in a refined, highly specialized setting. The center focuses on modern, motion-preserving procedures, including cervical artificial disc replacement, with an emphasis on precision, safety, and long-term function.
Led by Dr. Jason Cuéllar, a board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic spine surgeon, the practice brings together sophisticated surgical planning, advanced disc replacement technology, and a patient experience built around individual attention. Dr. Cuéllar has extensive experience with cervical disc replacement and has performed hundreds of successful artificial disc replacement procedures in South Florida.
Patients choose Palm Beach Spine & Disc Replacement Center for its focused expertise, thoughtful approach, and commitment to helping people move beyond pain while preserving natural motion whenever appropriate.
Types of Cervical Discs
There have been a number of discs released, each with varying degrees of success rates when stress-tested in clinical trials. Current FDA-approved discs include the Prestige-LP, Prestige-ST, prodisc® C, SECURE®-C and PCM artificial discs for the cervical spine. Below is a topline overview of the FDA-approved alternatives currently available.
CERVICAL DISCS
FDA-Approved Cervical Disc Options
Today, several FDA-approved cervical disc implants are available for patients who may benefit from motion-preserving spine surgery. Each device is designed to replace a damaged disc while helping the neck maintain more natural movement and reduce added stress on the nearby spinal levels.
At Palm Beach Spine & Disc Replacement Center, disc selection is highly individualized. Dr. Cuéllar and the surgical team evaluate each patient’s anatomy, condition, activity level, and long-term goals before recommending an implant. This personalized approach helps ensure that the chosen artificial disc is well matched to the patient, not simply the procedure.
Synergy® Cervical Disc
The Synergy® Cervical Disc is an artificial cervical disc designed to preserve motion at the treated level while helping restore and maintain the natural alignment of the neck. Its lordotic core and semi-constrained design are intended to support physiologic movement while adding stability after a damaged cervical disc is removed.
Made with titanium alloy endplates and a polyethylene core, the Synergy® Cervical Disc may be used for single-level cervical disc replacement in patients with symptomatic degenerative disc disease. The goal is to relieve nerve compression while helping preserve spinal balance and motion.
Prestige®-LP Cervical Disc
The Prestige®-LP Cervical Disc is a low-profile, two-piece implant designed to support more natural neck movement after a damaged cervical disc is removed. It is secured with screws to help provide stability at the treated level during recovery.
SECURE®-C Cervical Disc
The SECURE®-C Cervical Disc is designed to help maintain cervical curvature while supporting controlled motion. Its design allows for movements such as nodding, tilting, and rotation while helping stabilize the treated spinal segment.
Simplify® Cervical Disc
The Simplify® Cervical Disc is an FDA-approved implant designed for cervical disc replacement. Available in multiple sizes and heights, it allows the surgeon to select an implant that closely matches the patient’s anatomy and treatment needs.
Mobi-C® Cervical Disc
The Mobi-C® Cervical Disc was the first artificial cervical disc approved for both one-level and two-level use. Its mobile core is designed to help mimic natural cervical motion while replacing a damaged disc and preserving movement at the treated level.
prodisc® C Family
Includes the original prodisc® C and its successors (Vivo, SK, Nova). These discs use proven ball-and-socket mechanics to preserve flexibility and stability.
prodisc® C Cervical Disc
The prodisc® C Cervical Disc received premarket approval in 2007 and has long been considered one of the primary artificial disc options for cervical disc replacement. It is designed to maintain physiologic range of motion at one spinal level from C3 to C7.
The implant is made of three components: two cobalt chrome alloy endplates and an ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene inlay. As one of the most widely used cervical artificial discs, prodisc® C is available in multiple sizes and can be selected based on the patient’s anatomy.
prodisc® C Vivo
The prodisc® C Vivo is designed to replace a diseased or degenerated cervical disc in patients with symptomatic cervical disc disease. Using a ball-and-socket design, it supports flexion, extension, rotation, and lateral bending while helping resist shear forces.
The implant is composed of four components and includes secure teeth fixation to help provide stability at the treated level. Its design is intended to restore motion while maintaining controlled movement through the cervical spine.
prodisc® C SK
The prodisc® C SK is similar to the prodisc® C Vivo in that it is designed to preserve motion while replacing a damaged cervical disc. Its low-profile design may allow for multilevel application when more than one cervical disc requires replacement.
Instead of teeth fixation, the prodisc® C SK uses low-profile keels to help secure the implant in place. This design supports stability while allowing the treated segment to maintain motion.
prodisc® C Nova
The prodisc® C Nova is designed to maintain physiologic range of motion in the cervical spine. It uses the clinically proven ball-and-socket concept commonly used in joint replacement technology.
The implant includes four components: two titanium alloy endplates, a cobalt chrome alloy calotte insert, and an ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene inlay. It is inserted into the vertebral bodies en bloc and is designed to support motion after disc replacement.
Discontinued & Next-Generation Options
Some earlier-generation cervical disc implants, including PCM®, Prestige-ST, and BRYAN®, have been discontinued or are no longer commonly used in the same way as newer options. Other devices have helped shape the next generation of artificial disc replacement, including M6-C™ and international options such as CP-ESP® and Baguera®C.
At Palm Beach Spine & Disc Replacement Center, implant selection is based on the patient’s anatomy, diagnosis, activity level, and long-term goals. The focus is not on using one disc for every patient, but on choosing the device that best fits the individual case.
PCM® Cervical Disc
The PCM® Artificial Disc is generally advised for skeletally mature patients for a reconstruction of a degenerative cervical disc at one level from C3-C4 and C6-C7. It’s a two-piece articulating device composed of two alloy metal end plates, with an ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene spacer fixed to the caudal end plate. A very mobile disc, while it was FDA-approved next to a fusion, it is now discontinued.
Prestige-ST Cervical Disc
The Prestige-ST was the first Medtronic disc, secured with screws to allow full combat within 14 days. The surface of the disc is grainy, allowing existing bone to regenerate and integrate into it. It’s held in place by four bone screws and two lock screws, utilizing a patented ball-and-trough design which allows for motion to be preserved. Made from cobalt chrome and nickel, the Prestige-ST was unsuitable for patients with allergies to metal, and has since been replaced with the Prestige®-LP Cervical Disc.
BRYAN® Cervical Disc
First reported to be used in 2002, the now obsolete BRYAN® consisted of two titanium alloy “shells” surrounding a saline-filled (prior to implantation) polycarbonate urethane nucleus that added compression to the disc. The bone-contacting edges of each shell were coated with sintered titanium to provide for bony ingrowth. Originally considered the best device to preserve motion, achieving similar results to that of a spinal fusion. While placement did prove to yield favorable clinical outcomes, the BRYAN® cervical disc also reported various issues related to the operative approach, decompression process, loosening of the device and subsidence of the implant, as well as postoperative kyphosis.
M6-C
The M6-C is an artificial disc replacement device that mimics the natural movement of an anatomical disc, while also allowing for compressibility via a unique viscoelastic core. Since FDA-approval in February 2019, the M6-C has established a market-leading position outside the United States, with over 54,000 devices implanted globally.
FDA Trials - Under Investigation
The following discs are currently under investigation. Patients can review eligibility criteria to see if they may be possible candidates for clinical trials. If you are interested in signing up for a trial please contact our office.
Synergy Disc™
The Synergy Disc™ is considered revolutionary in its design and functionality to treat cervical degenerative disc disease in patients who are unresponsive to conservative management. Available in three footprint sizes, two heights and two corrective lordotic angles, it’s the first disc that addresses patients with normal cervical lordosis and preoperative deformity. It offers a semi-constrained design with controlled motion stops, optimized for multi-level stability, to restore balance and mimic natural kinesthetic movement for enhanced motion preservation.
M6-C™
The Level 2 M6-C™ disc is considered ‘next generation’ in its ability to mimic the natural structure and movement of the spine, including forward, backwards, up, down, side to side and left to right rotations. Its innovative design composes two titanium endplates that anchor the disc to neighboring bone, as well as a shock-absorbing nucleus and fiber annulus that combine to replicate the cushioning effect and controlled range of movement of the natural disc, potentially minimizing stress to adjacent discs.
Off-Market European Devices
CP-ESP®
The CP-ESP® was developed for the cervical spine after a decade of success with its lumbar spine counterpart, the LP-ESP® lumbar disc. It employs innovative technology to mimic the natural movement of the cervical spine to six degrees, ensuring enhanced mobility and shock absorption to take pressure off the adjacent discs. It’s composed of two hydroxyapatite-coated titanium endplates with elastic nucleus (inner core) and elastic annulus (outer core).
Baguera®C
With an anatomical design composed of Diamond-Like-Carbon (DLC) coated titanium end plates and a guided mobile PE nucleus, the Baguera®C delivers reduced MRI artifact and better postoperative control. It allows six degrees of freedom and improved stress distribution, due to significantly lower contact pressure distribution on polyethylene central core.
The Palm Beach Spine Approach
At Palm Beach Spine & Disc Replacement Center, the goal is to preserve healthy spinal motion whenever it is safe and appropriate to do so. Rather than relying on spinal fusion as the default solution, Dr. Cuéllar and the team carefully evaluate whether a motion-preserving procedure, such as cervical disc replacement, may offer a better fit for the patient’s condition and long-term goals.
This approach is built around a clear principle: when the spine can keep more of its natural movement, it may help reduce added stress on nearby discs and support a more comfortable return to daily life.
Each procedure is planned with advanced imaging, careful surgical strategy, and precise technique. For patients, that means personalized care from diagnosis through recovery, with a focus on lasting relief, restored function, and the highest level of surgical detail.
Why Cervical Disc Replacement?
For certain patients with cervical degenerative disc disease, artificial disc replacement may offer an advanced alternative to spinal fusion. Instead of permanently stopping motion at the treated level, cervical disc replacement is designed to preserve movement in the neck.
By allowing the spine to bend, rotate, and extend more naturally, the implant may help reduce added stress on the discs above and below the treated area. This motion-preserving approach can be especially valuable for patients who want relief from nerve compression while maintaining as much normal neck function as possible.
FROM OUR PATIENTS
Real Stories. Real Results.
“When you live with pain for so long, you forget what it’s like to feel great. Three months after my two discs were replaced, I’m feeling wonderful.”
ANGELA D. — LUMBAR ADR PATIENT, L4 & L5
“Dr. Cuéllar and his team has relieved me from 2+ years of back pain and spasms. I'm 43 and had 2 degenerative disks. After years of Physical Therapy and Chiropractic care, I decided to have surgery. It was the best decision in my case. I am 12 weeks post surgery and pain free. Thank you Dr. Cuéllar for your amazing care and walking me through every step of the process!”
JASON S.
“My husband and I are incredibly grateful for the care he received from Dr. Cuéllar and their entire team. From our first consultation through surgery and follow-up, we felt heard, respected, and confident in the treatment plan. Dr. Cuéllar and his team took the time to explain everything clearly and answered all of our questions with patience and compassion.”
JENNY S.
“I felt so safe and cared for through the whole process before and after surgery. Dr. Cuéllar and his entire team showed such compassion, knowledge, and skill that I sailed through surgery without any worry.”
KIM S.
“I have had chronic pain since a car wreck over 4 years ago. Now I’m pain free and couldn’t be happier! Dr. Cuéllar is the BEST at disc replacement surgery. I was blessed to have found him! Thank you again, Dr. Cuéllar!”
NOLA K.
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P (305) 459-3175 · F (855) 265-7167
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Aventura, FL 33180
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