Dr. Naresh P. Hanagodu, MBBS, MS (Ortho), D.Ortho (Bombay), is a Consultant Orthopedic & Joint Replacement Surgeon with 25+ years of experience who treats back pain, sciatica, slipped disc, cervical spondylosis and spinal stenosis at Sharada Orthopaedic Centre, Ganesh Nagar Colony, Bowenpally, Secunderabad. Most spine problems here are treated without an operation; surgery is advised only for persistent nerve compression, weakness or pain that has not settled with proper conservative care — and the same doctor sees you at every visit.
Two fields, 15 seconds. Our coordinator calls during clinic hours (Mon–Sat 1:00–6:30 PM) and fixes the earliest slot. Bring or WhatsApp any MRI/X-ray you already have.
Most back pain settles in 2–6 weeks with activity, simple medicines and correct movement. The three tiers below tell you how urgently to act — and the checker under them gives you an answer in ten seconds.
These can be emergencies — do not wait.
Not an emergency, but a nerve may be involved.
Come in if it is not clearly better by 4–6 weeks.
Tick what applies. This is general guidance, not a diagnosis — when in doubt, call us.
We will show you whether to act today, this week, or give it a little time.
Tap a region of the spine to highlight the conditions that usually start there — or read straight down the list.
Wear of the discs and small joints of the lower back — the commonest reason patients come to us, and overwhelmingly treated without surgery: a correct diagnosis, medicines for a defined period, and a staged exercise programme.
A disc pressing a nerve root, sending pain down the buttock and leg. About 9 in 10 improve without surgery in 6–12 weeks with the right plan; surgery (microdiscectomy) is for the minority with persistent nerve pain or weakness.
Wear in the neck causing pain, stiffness and tingling into the arm. Posture correction, physiotherapy and medicines first; surgery only when the spinal cord or a nerve is being compressed.
Narrowing of the spinal canal that causes leg heaviness and pain on walking, eased by sitting or bending forward — usually after 60. Staged care from physiotherapy and medicines to decompression surgery when walking distance keeps shrinking.
One vertebra slipping forward over the one below. Stabilising exercises and activity changes first; fusion surgery is reserved for unstable or persistently symptomatic slips.
In older adults after a minor fall, or in anyone after an accident. Bracing, pain control and bone-strengthening treatment for most; stabilisation surgery when a fracture is unstable or pressing on nerves.
Diagnosed and stabilised here; complex deformity correction and tumour surgery are referred to a spine sub-specialist or neurosurgical team — and we say so plainly rather than stretch.
Every patient without red flags leaves with a written plan that is reviewed at each visit. Most people never need the last step.
The plan is built for Indian life, not a textbook: how to sit on the floor and get up, squat toilet versus commode, two-wheeler riding, lifting water cans and children, long car and train journeys, and when a lumbar belt helps versus when it weakens you.
Examination, straight-leg-raise and a neurological check of power, sensation and reflexes; X-ray where useful. MRI only when the result will change treatment.
Safe doses for a set number of days or weeks, not indefinitely, with a review point. Long-term painkiller use is a warning sign, not a plan.
Core and hip strengthening, nerve-glide exercises for sciatica, posture retraining — with named exercises, sets and frequency, not "do some exercises".
What to keep doing, what to change for now and how to return to work, prayer, travel and exercise in the right order.
For selected patients whose leg or arm pain is blocking progress, an image-guided injection or nerve-root block may be advised as a bridge that lets the exercise programme work.
If the plan is not working we re-examine, re-image if needed, and talk honestly about the next step — which for most people is still not surgery.
Probably not by itself. Disc bulges, degeneration and small protrusions are found on the MRIs of many pain-free adults; the report describes the picture, not how you feel.
What matters is whether the finding explains your symptoms — which side, which nerve, and whether there is weakness. Bring the films and the report; the examination decides, not the words "bulge" or "degenerative". L1–L5 are the five lumbar (lower back) vertebrae; L4-L5 and L5-S1 are the levels most often affected.
The two lowest moving levels of the spine, where most bending and loading happens — so most disc problems are found here. A level name alone says nothing about severity.
The disc has spread slightly beyond its edge all the way round. Very common after 30 and often painless; it only matters if it is pressing a nerve that matches your symptoms.
A focal herniation — part of the disc pushing out (protrusion) or squeezing through (extrusion). More likely to press a nerve root than a bulge, yet most still settle with a proper conservative plan.
Age-related wear of discs and joints — the spine's grey hair. Universal with age and not, by itself, a reason for surgery.
Narrowing of the canal that carries the nerves. Mild narrowing is common; it becomes important when it causes leg heaviness and shrinking walking distance.
A nerve leaving the spine is being pressed. If the side and level match your leg or arm symptoms, this is the finding that drives the plan.
One vertebra has slipped forward on the one below. Graded 1–4; low grades are usually stable and managed with exercise.
Signal changes in the bone next to a worn disc. They describe the bone's reaction to wear, not a separate disease.
These are the established spine operations a patient may be advised; which one, if any, applies to you is decided only after examination and imaging. Where: spine surgery is carried out at an associated hospital with full anaesthesia and theatre facilities, cashless for eligible policies; assessment, the decision, and every follow-up visit are with Dr. Naresh at the Bowenpally clinic.
The fragment of disc pressing the nerve is removed through a small incision. For persistent sciatica or weakness that has not settled with conservative care. Typical hospital stay 1–3 days.
Bone and ligament narrowing the canal are trimmed to give the nerves room. For canal stenosis with shrinking walking distance. Typical stay 2–4 days.
Two or more vertebrae are joined with screws, rods and bone graft. For unstable slips, some fractures and selected degenerative cases. Typical stay 3–5 days; bone fuses over 3–6 months.
Bone cement is injected into a collapsed vertebra to stabilise it and relieve pain when bracing has failed. Usually a short stay.
Unstable fractures after accidents are stabilised with screws and rods to protect the spinal cord and allow early mobilisation.
Steroid and local anaesthetic placed precisely around an inflamed nerve under imaging guidance — a bridge for selected patients, not a cure, and always paired with the exercise programme.
Conventional, well-established techniques with magnification where appropriate. Complex deformity correction and spinal-cord tumour surgery are referred to a spine sub-specialist or neurosurgical team.
Serious nerve injury after modern spine surgery for disc or stenosis is rare — well under one in a hundred in published series — and the operations are done with magnification and, where needed, nerve monitoring. The greater real-world risks are the ordinary ones of any surgery (infection, clots, anaesthesia) and the risk of operating when surgery was not needed.
The condition most linked to paralysis is an untreated emergency such as cauda equina syndrome — which is why the red-flag list at the top of this page matters more than fear of the operation itself.
Physiotherapy continues after surgery; the written plan is the same habit as before. Prayer and floor-sitting, long travel and return to field work are discussed individually.
Walking the same or next day after microdiscectomy or decompression.
Home after microdiscectomy/decompression; fusion patients usually go home by day 3–5.
Desk work and light daily activity; driving once off strong painkillers and able to brake comfortably.
Field, manual and physical work after microdiscectomy or decompression.
After fusion, the bone joins over 3–6 months with a staged return to bending and lifting.
Both operate on the spine. For back pain, sciatica, slipped disc, spondylosis and fractures, an orthopaedic surgeon is a right first stop; we refer to neurosurgical colleagues for spinal-cord tumours and selected complex cases, and say so.
Non-surgical care — consultation, X-ray or MRI where needed, physiotherapy sessions and, for some, an injection — is usually a small fraction of the cost of surgery. Surgery cost depends on five things:
Microdiscectomy costs less than a decompression, which costs less than an instrumented fusion.
Screws, rods and cages add to a fusion; a microdiscectomy needs none.
General ward, semi-private or private room at the associated hospital.
1–3 days for most disc surgery; 3–5 days for fusion; anaesthesia and ICU time if needed.
Bring the films, reports and the advice you were given. We will tell you whether the finding explains your symptoms, whether a proper conservative course has been completed, and whether surgery is needed now, later or not at all. Many patients who come for a second opinion leave with a plan, not an operation.
Orthopaedic spine care — back and neck pain, sciatica, slipped disc, spondylosis, stenosis and spine fractures — alongside knee and hip replacement, fracture care and sports injuries. Rotary Vocational Award (2001–02), Rotary Club of Secunderabad Cantonment. Practises at Sharada Orthopaedic Centre, Bowenpally, Secunderabad.
About Dr. NareshShort patient-education reels from @drnareshhanagodu. Tap a video to play it here.
Ganesh Nagar Colony, Bowenpally, Secunderabad 500011 — ground-level, wheelchair-accessible, 10–20 minutes from the areas below and about 30 minutes from Kompally, Balanagar, Malkajgiri and Sanath Nagar. Bring your MRI, X-rays and previous prescriptions; if you cannot come in yet, WhatsApp the report first.
Tap an area for directions from there.
Consulting hours Monday to Saturday, 1:00 PM to 6:30 PM; Sunday closed.
Sharada Orthopaedic Centre, Ganesh Nagar Colony, Bowenpally, Secunderabad 500011 · Monday to Saturday, 1:00 PM – 6:30 PM. WhatsApp your MRI or call.
