Endoscopic spine surgery and arthroscopic spine surgery are two interrelated terms that commonly apply to surgical procedures to treat patients who suffer from several conditions on their spine. Both employ methods with emphasis on how to inflict minimal scars to the patients. Traditional surgery may give clearer view to the surgeons but it also bears risks as there will be removal of muscles, ligaments, or nerves just to take a look at the affected area. This may be proven too much for the patient especially if there are possibilities of the disorders to spread following the surgery. Both of the methods said earlier give the surgeons a chance to gain access to the affected area without putting the patients in so much risk.
The procedures eliminate the needs of removing so much organs or tissues surrounding an affected area so that there will be a shorter period for the surgical wounds to heal and further possible damage can be prevented from occurring.
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Arthroscopic Spine Surgery Procedure
Endoscopic spine surgery is a method done to the back using a probe attached to camera. This camera then transfers the 3D image of the inner side of the back so that surgeons may see what is happening in there without actually cutting into the body. Then, if the problem has been assessed, the surgeon will perform the necessary procedure accordingly. So, in a sense, the endoscopic probe inserted to the body acts as a helping tool for the surgeons to guide them along the course of treatment.
With the arthroscopic spine surgery (as well as endoscopic spine surgery), the first thing that a surgeon will do is to incise a patient’s back with minimum size. Into this incision goes the probe. As the procedure involves joint (arthros means joints), the method specifically aims at the joints connecting the spine.
Similar to the endoscopic spine surgery, arthroscopic variant uses the probe to help the surgeons getting a better view and applying minimally invasive treatment for the affected area.
Arthroscopic Spine Surgery Cost
Averagely, arthroscopic spine surgery costs $15,000 but the figure can change depending on some factors.
Potential Risks of Arthroscopic Spine Surgery
Talking about the risks there are to arthroscopic spine surgery, you can see that it is not different from any other form of surgeries. Anesthesia used during the procedure alone is enough to trigger a series of allergic reaction to the patient’s body. Infection is also another thing to take a look at, in addition to bleeding. As minimally invasive as the method may seem, nerve damage can also take place. This is especially true if the nerve surrounding the area is already too damaged even a tiny scratch required to access the location may cause further agony.
