Spinal Surgeries performed with advance technology

I was pursuing my first year internship of BPT, when I first met Puneet, tall (6’2’’) handsome, an IIT passed out computer engineer. I was attracted to him the moment I saw him. I was very young and the most complicated cases seemed most attractive. Yeah, Puneet was my first patient and I was his therapist. He had an accident on bike, hurt his spine and suffered from qudriparesis.

India spends a lot of their time on road. Like Puneet, they can also be a potential victim of road traffic accidents (and definite victim of loads of pollution). Spinal injuries are the most disabling but common form of accident outcome one has to bear with. Over 200,000 spinal injuries happen here every year. As the times have changed, so is the Spinal cord surgery in India. The previously dangerous to perform procedures are coming about easily and complication free. The technology has renovated the surgical outcomes on all parameters

·         Precision

·         Recovery

·         Results

Prime amongst other technological advancements is the 3D printing technology being used commonly for better access into the spinal structure for creating patient specific implants for spinal surgery candidates. Artificial intelligence in Neuro surgery uses most commonly used surgical techniques in the form of software platforms to predict near proximate results of effectiveness of the surgery before the surgery even starts.

Since we are talking about spinal implants, you would be pleased to know that numerous flexible and human like material made spinal implants have advanced and are being used with unbelievable clarity/appearance while on an X-Ray, CT or MRI during the surgery and later. Spinal preservation surgeries can be initiated through bone growth initiating proteins (BMP) for highly brittle spine. Even in preoperative cases, BMP induction has known to improve post-surgical implant placement to a great extent.

From perspective of accuracy, a better view is made available by spinal direction finding equipment so that each procedure takes place with proper visibility through an X -Ray or on a computer screen.

While mentioning the advanced spinal surgical techniques, it’s imperative that we discuss the robotic surgeries (surgeries by machines held by doctors) that exclude errors and provide more access to the surgery area. This technique is used worldwide for managing lower back and leg pain in older adults with degenerative lumbar spine especially in spinal stenosis treatment.

I am a big fan of the fact that how minimally invasive surgeries have renovated the operative field to the core. Worth mentioning here is the endoscopic spinal surgery for spinal stenosis treatment with extreme patient safety. Just not tissue preservation, this form of spinal stenosis treatment has put forth the pain free side of the surgical outcome. This means the patient is not just able to walk, but walk absolutely pain free, a hope for our young patients.

A damaged or destructed tissue can be replaced by manmade near human disc tissue with almost same function as the natural disc.

This bit will remain incomplete without stating the revolution in the anesthesia techniques brought in particularly to spinal stenosis surgery in the form of conscious sedation. You can check with patient for both sensation and movement, right at the operation table. Apart from surgical techniques in spinal management, there are a few extraordinary medicines and agents (tranexamic acid and orthobiologics) that are lately being employed during surgeries to ensure extremely limited loss of blood and proper bony fusion.

You know what the best part is; the patients who have exhaustively tried all methods, physiotherapy, and rehabilitation will now not have to wait for their lives to restart. The advancement in technology has brought forwards another safer, resumed and quicker side of spinal surgeries, a new hope for patients like Puneet and many more. Being a part of the system and following the procedures very closely from decades, I am proud of the modernization bringing transformation to the field of Neuro surgery.