MAKING THE ROUNDS WITH Dr. Mitch Amish

Dr. Mitch Amish Discusses a Minimally Invasive Back Surgery That Turns Back the Clock on Age-Related Vertebral Problems

Did you know that Osteoporosis affects 44 million Americans and causes more than 700,000 vertebral compression fractures annually, just in the U.S.?

Fortunately, there is a minimally invasive surgery working to correct such spinal ailments. This surgery is called Kyphoplasty and is used specifically to treat painful vertebral body collapse/fracture (VCFs) that may be caused by osteoporosis or the spread of a tumor to the vertebral body.

The Kyphoplasty procedure uses a balloon to restore the vertebral body height and shape. Your doctor's next step will be using bone cement to strengthen your vertebrate. The procedure may be performed under intravenous sedation; you may need local anesthetic or general anesthetic.

During the operation, you will lie face down on the operating table while two x-ray machines scan to show the collapsed bones. Your surgeon makes two small incisions, then inserts a tube into the center of the vertebral body. Through this tube, balloons are placed in the center of the vertebral body. After the balloons are placed, they are inflated, pushing the bone back toward its normal height and shape. This creates a cavity that your surgeon will fill with bone cement. Once this cement has hardened, you surgeon will take out the tubes and close the incisions with a single stitch.

Maybe one of the best pieces of news about this surgery is that typically, you will be able to go home the same day. You can go back to all of your normal, everyday activities as soon as possible, with no restrictions. Because the bone cement used on your vertebrate hardens within 15 minutes, there really isn't any healing that needs to happen from your standpoint as a patient.

This all may sound a little too good to be true. As with any medical procedure, there are risks involved. It is possible that you may require additional treatments, which would be either medication or additional surgery. Take a deep breath; this is quite unlikely. More than 95% of patients have rated their Kyphoplasty a success.

Kyphoplaty has been known to help prevent future fractures, keeping the spine lined up in its native upright position. So, for years to come, you will be able to follow your mother's longtime advice, and "stand up straight".