FCBARCELONA.CAT

13.05.2008 18:44

Touré out for 6 to 8 weeks

Anna Segura

Touré Yaya has successfully undergone surgery on Tuesday, as explained by doctor Enric Cáceres. He is expected to take between 6 and 8 weeks to recover.

The Ivory Coast international was operated on this Tuesday by doctor Enric Cáceres at the USP Instituto Universitario Dexeus. Touré required surgery on the slipped disc that was diagnosed in March. The player was originally given primary but temporary treatment consisting of peridural infiltration, and it is thanks to this that he has been able to keep playing until the end of the season.

Successful operation

After intervention, doctor Enric Cáceres, the operating surgeon, spoke to the press in the company of first team doctor, Ricard Pruna. Doctor Cáceres announced that discectomy had “gone ahead as normal” and he was able to remove the portion of disc that was pressurising a nerve.

Recovery

The doctors said that “he will be able to leave hospital in a few days”. From then “he will wear a strap to immobilise the area for three weeks” and should be able to return to training in 6 to 8 weeks time, in other words in late June or early July.

Sacrifice for the team

The doctors explained that in reference to Touré’s condition “the initial treatment of a slipped disc is peridural injection. The result is less pain after a few days, and that is how he was able to carry on playing.” Doctor Enric Cáceres added that “the risk of an irreversible injury is very small”.

But the doctors still felt that the best option was to operate, and also said that what the player had done over the last few weeks “was a huge sacrifice, because despite the anaesthetic, he could still feel pain, and he complained of this when finishing games”.

Unlikely to recur

Ricard Pruna said that “surgical intervention should put a definitive end to these problems”. Doctor Cáceres agreed, saying “the recurrence of a slipped disc is about 3% for the next five years … and resonance has shown that the disc is healthy. It is a slipped disc and not discopathy. It is a very healthy disc and there is no reason why it should affect his performance”.