I had lumbar 3 discs in a row that were ruptured (the ohter two are between my shoulder blades), and the middle one was the one that was causing the nerve damage / pain / paralysis and had to be removed.

My surgeon told me that fusing would cause the other discs to get worse, since it basically transfers the load to the next highest joint. Alternatively, he could fuse 5 (!) vertebrae, but then I "wouldn't be able to tie my own shoes".

My guy removed the disc but didn't do any fusion. You may want to ask about this option, but I think it was a compromise in my situation. I was told I'd probably need more surgery later.

J