Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Specialist

What is minimally invasive spine surgery?

Minimally invasive spine surgery (MISS) is an alternative to traditional open spine surgery. Dr. Amin makes a small cut in your skin and inserts one or more tubes called retractors. The retractors ease the muscles aside, causing significantly less trauma than the large incision used in open surgery.

Dr. Amin uses a microscope to see your spine through the channel created by the retractor. His surgical instruments go through the same small incisions. After completing the surgery, Dr. Amin removes the tube, and the muscles return to their normal position.

What are the advantages of MISS?

MISS offers several advantages compared with traditional open surgery. Because it requires much smaller incisions, MISS causes far less tissue damage, resulting in benefits like:

• Considerably less pain
• Lower risk of infection
• Less bleeding
• Shorter hospital stay
• Faster recovery
• Minimal scarring

Because MISS causes less pain, you don’t need strong medication after your surgery. That means you’re not as likely to experience unpleasant side effects.

Which conditions can be treated with MISS?

Many conditions are treatable using MISS. Common ones include:

• Radiculopathy (pinched spinal nerve)
• Spinal stenosis (narrowed spinal canal)
• Sciatica (lower back and leg pain)
• Spondylolisthesis (slipped vertebrae)
• Spinal instability
• Infections
• Tumors (cancerous and noncancerous)
• Spinal injuries
• Degenerative disc disease
• Herniated discs

After reviewing your medical history and symptoms and looking at X-ray, CT scan, or MRI results, Dr. Amin determines if MISS is right for you. For some patients, traditional open surgery might be a better option to relieve your symptoms.

What should I expect during my recovery from MISS?

Compared with open surgery, minimally invasive spine surgery causes less pain, less damage to muscles, shorter hospital stay, and faster recovery. Patients also see a faster return to work and daily activities following MISS.

Typically, the hospital stay following MISS is 1-3 days and depends on the specific surgery that the patient undergoes. The hospital stay is shorter in patients who undergo decompression without instrumented fusion. Dr. Amin recommends physical therapy to help regain strength and speed your recovery.

Call Beejal Y. Amin MD today or book an appointment online to learn more about MISS and see if you’re a candidate for this form of surgery.