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Lower back pain affects four out of five adults sometime during their life
65 million Americans suffer from lower back pain every year
Each year, almost 14 million people consult a physician due to back pain
People between the ages of 30-50 are most likely to experience low back pain
Low back problems are the most common cause of disability in people under age 45
80 percent of Americans will experience back pain at some time in their lives
Americans spend at least $50 billion each year on low back pain, a leading contributor to missed work
For 85 percent of back pain sufferers, the primary site of back pain is the lower back
More than 500,000 spine surgeries are performed annually in the U.S. alone
More than 200,000 lumbar spinal fusion surgeries are performed in the U.S. each year
The least invasive approach for an L5-S1 fusion is via a novel new technique called an AxiaLIF. Developed by an interventional radiologist from the University of Minnesota, the AxiaLIF allows the spine surgeon to
perform a percutaneous 360 degree fusion at the L5-S1 disc space. It provides safe, reproducible access to the lumbar spine via the pre-sacral space. Pre-sacral entry is paracoccygeal and fluoroscopically navigated axially via midline bony landmarks of the anterior sacrum. Using specially designed instruments, the surgeon
performs a discectomy, preparing the vertebral endplates for fusion. Bone graft is packed into the L5-S1 disc space and a load-bearing distraction rod is inserted across the L5-S1 disc space, restoring disc height and thus indirectly decompressing the neural elements. The entire procedure is performed percutaneously, through a 10 mm working cannula and a 2 cm paracoccygeal incision. Additional posterior fixation may be added at the surgeon's discretion, based on individual patient needs. This may consist of percutaneous pedicle screws or transfacet screws.
There is no question that the trend toward minimally invasive spinal fusion is a step in the right direction. However, a spinal fusion is always a double-edged sword. While minimally invasive techniques are expected to reduce adjacent segment disease by reducing collateral damage to adjacent facet joints and soft tissues, there is no way to eliminate the altered biomechanics of a lumbar fusion. Spinal fusion surgery has the potential to accelerate degeneration of adjacent spinal segments due to the transfer of loads and stress. It is for this reason that motion preservation technology is one of the most exciting and fastest growing areas of research and development in spine surgery today.
The CHARITÉ™ Artificial Disc is the first FDA approved artificial spinal disc to treat patients with single-level degenerative disc disease at levels L4-5 or L5-S1. The device consists of two cobalt chrome endplates and a movable ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene plastic core that, once implanted, is designed to help align the spine preserve its ability to move. These are the same materials used in the more common total hip and total knee replacements. The CHARITÉ™ Artificial Disc has been available since 1987 outside the U.S. and more than 7,500 devices have been implanted worldwide. Results from a two-year clinical study of 375 patients show those implanted with the CHARITÉ™ Artificial Disc improved or maintained their range of motion and experienced less pain sooner compared with spinal fusion patients. Their pain and functional test scores were statistically superior to those of fusion patients at all points through 12 months of follow-up, and numerically superior at 24 months. Finally, there was higher patient satisfaction among the patients receiving the CHARITÉ™
There is no question that the trend toward minimally invasive spinal fusion is a step in the right direction. However, a spinal fusion is always a double-edged sword. While minimally invasive techniques are expected to reduce adjacent segment disease by reducing collateral damage to adjacent facet joints and soft tissues, there is no way to eliminate the altered biomechanics of a lumbar fusion. Spinal fusion surgery has the potential to accelerate degeneration of adjacent spinal segments due to the transfer of loads and stress. It is for this reason that motion preservation technology is one of the most exciting and fastest growing areas of research and development in spine surgery today.
The CHARITÉ™ Artificial Disc is the first FDA approved artificial spinal disc to treat patients with single-level degenerative disc disease at levels L4-5 or L5-S1. The device consists of two cobalt chrome endplates and a movable ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene plastic core that, once implanted, is designed to help align the spine preserve its ability to move. These are the same materials used in the more common total hip and total knee replacements. The CHARITÉ™ Artificial Disc has been available since 1987 outside the U.S. and more than 7,500 devices have been implanted worldwide. Results from a two-year clinical study of 375 patients show those implanted with the CHARITÉ™ Artificial Disc improved or maintained their range of motion and experienced less pain sooner compared with spinal fusion patients. Their pain and functional test scores were statistically superior to those of fusion patients at all points through 12 months of follow-up, and numerically superior at 24 months. Finally, there was higher patient satisfaction among the patients receiving the CHARITÉ™