Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery: Faster Recovery With Smaller Incisions
Minimally invasive spine surgery uses advanced tools and smaller incisions to reduce pain and shorten recovery time to get you back in motion.
By Robert Ames, MD, Spine Surgeon, Virtua Reconstructive Orthopedics
An aching back can stop you in your tracks, from walking in the park to grocery shopping to sleeping through the night. When physical therapy, injections, and other therapies don’t relieve your symptoms, spine surgery may be necessary.
Today, spine surgeons are using new approaches for treating back and neck conditions, helping more people than ever get back in motion.
Minimally invasive spine surgery is something that Virtua has adopted as the standard for most procedures for many years, with smaller incisions and anatomic corridors to reduce damage to nearby muscles, tissue, and bone. With endoscopic surgery and even smaller incisions, we’re taking the approach to the next level.
What is minimally invasive spine surgery?
For many years, open spine surgery was the norm, with incisions 6 inches long. The surgeon would need to pull back muscles, affecting the surrounding tissue, and as a result, patients could experience extensive post-surgical pain and a lengthy recovery.
Minimally invasive surgery reduced the incision size to 1 to 2 inches. Aided by X-rays or other imaging, the surgeon uses a small tube called a retractor to allow narrower access to the spine.
Today, minimally invasive spine surgery is used to treat conditions such as herniated or degenerated discs, stenosis (a narrowing of the spaces in the spine), and fractures.
Procedures may involve inserting screws and rods to stabilize the spine or injecting special cement into fractured vertebrae.
What is endoscopic spine surgery?
Endoscopic spine surgery, also referred to as ultra-minimally invasive surgery, involves making just a half-inch incision and inserting a thin tube equipped with a high-resolution camera and specialized tools. The surgeon gently separates muscles rather than having to cut them, maintaining their integrity and reducing postoperative pain. Patients often go home the same day and resume light activities in a few days.
Your surgeon will determine whether your condition can be treated with the endoscopic approach.
Common types of endoscopic spine surgery include:
- Microdiscectomy: Removal of a herniated or damaged disc that is pressing on a nerve
- Laminectomy: Removal of bone or ligaments in the back to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerves
- Foraminotomy: Widening of the space where nerves exit the spine by removing some of the disc and surrounding bony structures
Who is a candidate for minimally invasive or endoscopic spine surgery?
Minimally invasive surgery, particularly endoscopic approaches, makes surgery an option for people who would otherwise be considered high risk, including obese individuals and older adults.
By targeting the condition in a much more direct way, there is less trauma to the tissue and bone around the nerves and discs, improving outcomes.
Schedule a spine surgery consultation in South Jersey
If persistent back pain or neck pain has not responded to nonsurgical treatments, our team of spine surgeons can help get you back in action. Call 609-267-9400 to request an appointment.
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