- Myth No. 1 – Lasers used in spinal surgery are experimental
This is not true. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration or FDA had already approved the use of holmium laser to be used in the spine and orthopedics in the 1980s. In addition, Medicare has approved the use of laser to relieve debilitating lumbar discs to outpatients and obtaining Medicare approval for a surgery is not simple task. The utilization of the laser in spinal surgical procedures has generated numerous controversies for a number of reasons.
To start with, the laser equipment is expensive, maintenance is costly, and the laser fibers are non-reusable, therefore cost is an issue. Next, a lot of spinal surgeons were never taught to do a procedure using a tube of one-half inch or less. The conventional incisions are bigger and the patients are administered with general anesthesia. With this in mind, the advantages of using laser result to less soft tissue disruption and bring more comfort and relief to patients.
The laser can be very effective and helpful tool in treating back problems. However, proper handling and care must be done when using laser to achieve best results. To this point, there are no prospective research and studies that compare the use of laser in treating conditions such as sacroiliac joint syndrome, stenosis, and facet syndrome. Many surgeons today prefer the use of laser in treating all the problems that are mentioned previously.
- Myth No. 2 – The laser is the main device for treating spinal stenosis
This is not true. The truth is that aside from treating spinal stenosis, the laser can be very beneficial when carrying out some kinds of spinal surgery. However, the laser may not be the main device to treat a disorder. An essential tool when performing spinal surgery is excellent visualization since this will control the bleeding on the surgical area or the part of the body being treated.
The surgeon must have an excellent visualization because he or she will be using a smaller tube for this type of minimally invasive procedure. The advantage of utilizing the laser in a smaller tube is that it does not use up much space and it can emit a very powerful heat or beam of energy. Soft tissue bleeders and soft tissues respond perfectly to the beam coming from the laser due to their water content. They simply vaporize or shrink back when hit with heat coming from the laser. The beam of energy is quite small and can be precisely directed at a particular target, especially tiny capillary bleeders, without damaging surrounding tissues. This kind of precision is very important in a restricted space or every time a small tube is utilized to carry out the surgical procedure.
The primary instruments that get rid of bony stenosis are mechanized bone cutting tools. It is because bones do not react that much to the laser heat and boney stenosis is generally very thick. The ideal way to manage the bleeding and soft tissues is to visualize the surgical areas that must be decompressed, particularly when utilizing a small tube. In lots of ways, the laser switches electro-cautery, permitting the application of the smallest tube to carry out the surgical procedure safely and properly.
When carrying out the surgical procedure, the smaller the incision and the smaller the tools used will result in a number of benefits. It result in will less scar tissue formation, less pain for the patient, fewer pain medications are required, and shorter time period for recovery. This type of approach can be carried out usually as an out-patient procedure.
- Myth No. 3 – The application of laser in endoscopic spine surgery result in favorable healing qualities.
This is not true. The advantage of endoscopic laser spine surgery is its heating qualities. The beam or heat coming from the laser has the capacity to coagulate, heat, and vaporize soft tissues, such as scar tissue and surgical marks, while working in a very limited space. The laser beam is able to almost take away the necessity for electro-cautery when performing spine surgery, which is preferable since some patients are quite receptive to electricity when surgical procedure is carried out under conscious sedation.
One more benefit that is rarely pointed out is how effective the laser heat in revision spinal surgery where there’s plenty of scar tissue covered around the nerves of the spine. With this in mind, it is beneficial for surgeons to practice conscious sedation with their patients while performing revision spinal surgery to avoid related injuries and help solve the problem.
Even though the laser is really important when performing surgical procedures, the most important aspect of an effective and successful endoscopic spinal surgery is the right diagnosis. Using the laser alone in endoscopic spine surgery is not sufficient because it needs experience and lots of dedication and determination from the surgeon you prefer.
Cedric Loiselle is an excellent and knowledgeable writer of high-quality and informative articles catering to a number of niches including health and fitness, home improvement, as well as business and finance.