Minimally invasive spinal surgery at Brighton Hospital

What is minimally invasive spinal surgery?

Endoscopic spinal surgery is the least invasive of all available approaches to the spine – it is a minimally invasive alternative to lumbar discectomy and microdiscectomy.

Endoscopic spinal surgery uses a camera to view the areas worked on at high magnification, which results in the least damage to normal structures, and has been shown to cause the least inflammation of available techniques. 

As a result of this innovative procedure, patient recovery time is much quicker, which leads to a faster return to work and normal activities.

Before proceeding with back treatment, all patients are required to undergo a full consultation with the surgeon. 

What are the benefits of minimally invasive spinal surgery?

The benefits of endoscopic spinal surgery include:

• Smaller surgical incisions
• Less muscle and bone damage
• Decreased pain levels
• Reduced blood loss
• Minimal infection risk
• Day case surgery in most cases
• Faster recovery
• Earlier return to work.

Is minimally invasive spinal surgery right for me?

This type of surgery is useful for patents who have a lumbar disc prolapse or stenosis (tightness around the nerves) – it allows for decompression without fusion in many instances.

Some conditions are still not suitable for endoscopic surgery. In these cases your surgeon can still employ other minimally invasive techniques. Sometimes there may be a need to convert to traditional lumbar discectomy. 

What happens during minimally invasive spinal surgery?

Endoscopic spinal surgery is performed under general anaesthetic. 

There are different endoscopic approaches with the choice of approach dictated by the location of the nerve compression. One approach is from the flank, the other approach is a more traditional from the middle of the back. Neither are associated with much operative pain.

What are the risks of minimally invasive spinal surgery?

The intra-operative risks of endoscopic surgery are similar to those of open surgery (though at a low rate) and there may be a slight increased risk of revision surgery.