Lumbar decompression is a surgery performed to lessen back pain due to pinched nerves. This common surgery takes pressure off certain spinal nerves to alleviate lower back and leg pain. A small part of bone over the nerve root or material under the root is removed to provide more space for the nerve root and promote healing. Although traditional lumbar decompression surgery has achieved success for many patients over the years, newer minimally invasive techniques for lumbar decompression are now being performed with fewer side effects and quicker recovery.
If you are experiencing back pain or related symptoms like numbness, weakness or tingling, Charla R. Fischer, MD at NYU Langone Medical Center might recommend minimally invasive lumbar decompression to help you regain normal activities and comfort.
Specialized instruments
Minimally invasive lumbar decompression involves using surgical instruments specially designed for MIS surgery. These instruments are small and allow the surgeon to separate the muscles instead of having to cut them as done in traditional open spine surgery. This means less tissues that require healing after surgery, and therefore less pain and faster recovery.
Outpatient surgery
The advances in technology of minimally invasive lumbar decompression allows for many of these surgeries to be performed in a specialized surgery center on an outpatient basis. From start to finish, minimally invasive lumbar decompression surgery usually takes about 45 minutes. Surgery centers often provide a more comfortable setting for surgery and allow patients to return home the same day to begin recovery sooner.
Benefits
The advantages of minimally invasive lumbar decompression are significant. These include smaller incisions, less blood loss, less soft tissue damage, reduced pain, less pain medication use, lower infection risk, safer procedures, and quicker recovery. The main goal of minimally invasive lumbar decompression is to improve the patient’s quality of life quickly and with the least amount of discomfort as possible.
Medical advancements in minimally invasive spine surgery like lumbar decompression allow many patients to regain their normal lives more quickly and less painfully than traditional surgical methods. Less impacts on your body during surgery, such as tiny incisions and less trauma to surrounding tissues, means a happier and more comfortable patient. If you are considering minimally invasive lumbar decompression in New York City, contact Charla R. Fischer, MD today to see if this innovative technique is right for you.