Surgery for lower back pain can be quite successful with success up to 90% for 2/3 relief of pain. The results depend upon the pathology, the number of levels involved, the expectations and the desire of the patient to participate in a good rehabilitation program. A surgical workup is in order to determine if your father is a candidate for surgery.
See the section under lumbar degenerative disc disease, the section under discograms (may or may not be necessary), the section under recovery from lumbar fusion and the section on surgical TLIF for more information.
Dr. Corenman