When many people hear the term “spinal surgery,” they immediately think of highly invasive procedures with long recovery times and major side effects such as significant scarring and other issues. The reality is that spinal surgery has come a long way in recent years, and there are a number of methods that orthopedic surgeons can utilize to perform minimally invasive surgeries to address a variety of different sources of back pain. With a minimally invasive surgery, your doctor will focus on minimizing the size of your incision which can help reduce pain, avoid issues like infection and blood loss, and ultimately have you back on your feet as soon as possible.
If you have been living with chronic or severe back pain and have avoided surgery, you may want to speak with a doctor about advances in spinal surgery that can help you move past your pain. 1-800-Injured is an attorney and medical referral service that can connect you with an experienced and certified professional in your area.
Different Minimally Invasive Surgery Types
The following are a few of the many different types of minimally invasive spinal surgeries that may be available to you, depending on the nature of your pain and other root issues.
Microendoscopic Discectomy
This procedure removes a portion of your herniated disc in order to reduce pressure on the spine and nerves. Your surgeon will use an endoscopic tube with a camera in order to get a clear view of the disc without needing to create a large incision. The surgical instruments also fit into this tube so there is no need for additional room to allow for additional access.
Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion (TLIF)
If the problematic disc is in bad enough shape, this type of surgery will completely remove the disc before your surgeon fuses the surrounding vertebrae back together to provide support that the disc was responsible for. When the disc is removed, the nerves in the area are relieved of significant pressure, and the improved structure of the spine after the fusion will allow for greater range of mobility.
Facet Joint Ablation
In this procedure a small needle is inserted into the affected facet joint and a controlled electric shock is delivered to the nerves in order to cut off the pain signals to the brain. Since this is performed with a needle, this procedure is more like an injection than a surgery, and is highly effective for issues like arthritis.
Percutaneous Image-guided Lumbar Decompression (PILD)
Spinal stenosis is a medical term for the narrowing of the spine, which consequently puts increased pressure on the nerves in the narrowed area. PILD is done with a small needle and reduced pressure by removing a portion of the problem lamina and reducing the volume of the ligamentum flavum.