Simply put, a minimally invasive spine surgery is a substitute to the conventional open surgical procedures that gets executed for treating the spinal disorders, like herniated disc or degenerative disc disease. The spine surgery that gets performed minimally invasively provides several advantages, like less cutting through the soft tissues, small incisions, less post-operative pain, outpatient options and a quicker recovery.
The standard surgery objectives
Whether the spine surgery gets conducted minimally invasively or in an open manner, there are two goals for the same:
- Decompression – The spinal decompression includes taking out the tissue compressing the nerve structures, such as the spinal cord and spinal nerve root. The bone spurs and the fragments from the herniated disc are instances of the tissue that can lead to neural compression.
- Stabilization – The abnormal movement of one or more segments or levels of the spine can result in neck or back pain. The surgical processes that stabilize or pause the spine movement include fusion and instrumentation.
The techniques for minimally invasive spine surgery
This kind of surgery includes the mini-open or percutaneous procedures. Rather than cutting through the soft tissues, the segmental tubular retraction develops an expandable tunnel that passes through the muscles to access the spinal column. A small video camera projects the visualization of the surgical space on the monitor at the time of the process to a spine surgeon. And this surgery gets conducted via a tubular retraction system making use of specific instruments. To know more, you can check out tennesseespinesurgeon.com.
The spinal disorders that get treated
- Degenerative disc disease
The degenerative disc disease (DDD) generally develops in older people, impacting the spine’s intervertebral discs. The usual cellular-age associated changes in the body can make the disc stiff, lose strength and flexibility, shape and height, and the capacity to absorb and distribute the forces related to movement. Such structural changes can give rise to the chances of disc herniation.
- Herniated discs
The herniated disc also called a ruptured disc or a slipped disc takes place as the gel-like inner part of the intervertebral disc breaks via the secure outer covering of the disc layer. And other than a damaged disc, the interior gel can inflame and irritate the close by spinal nerves and result in back pain.
Can you opt-in for a minimally invasive spine surgery?
A minimally invasive spine surgery provides several advantages, like faster recovery times, small incisions, lesser risks, and less pain. But it is a surgical process. And it would help if you remembered that less than 5% of individuals having neck or back pain require spine surgery. Any surgery should be considered the last option for treating the pain caused by any spinal disorder.
Hence, the ideal thing to do here is to get talking with your doctor about your problems. They will assess the situation to check whether medication can resolve the issue or not. In case you need a minimally invasive spine surgery, it’s your doctor who can determine that and provide you with a go-ahead.