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Back Surgery With Less Pain and Less Recovery Time
November 9, 2007
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Georgetown University Hospital has the Most Experienced Team with XLIF Minimally Invasive Lower Spinal Fusion in the DC Region
Lynn Haverty, a resident of Darnestown, Maryland, had been living with excruciating back pain for about seven years. The pain was so intense it affected her ability to walk, sleep and live a regular life. After undergoing back surgery, along with other forms of therapy with little relief, she was finally referred to Georgetown University Hospital and underwent the only minimally invasive procedure available to fuse the lower portion, or the lumbar region, of her spine. Six weeks later Mrs. Haverty was up and walking around, completely recovered.
“This procedure gave me my life back,” said Mrs. Haverty. “I can walk again, I can sleep through the night and I am off my pain medication. I am a real success story if you ask me.”
Patients who suffer from chronic lower back pain now have this new option for treatment when it comes to lumbar spinal fusion surgery. The minimally invasive technique is called XLIF (eXtreme Lateral Interbody Fusion) and the procedure is done through a small incision in the patient’s side and a series of small holes along the spine on the back. Special tools are then used to avoid muscle and tissue damage, to fuse parts of the spine. This new procedure reduces recovery time to four-to-six weeks instead of six-to-twelve months, with the standard open spine treatment.
“This surgical procedure offers a safe and effective, less invasive way to treat those who suffer from constant back pain,” said Faheem Sandhu, MD, director, Minimally Invasive Spinal Surgery at Georgetown University Hospital. “This technique offers greater access to the spine, greater ability to see the spine during surgery, less blood loss, and most importantly, a shorter recovery period for the patient.”
It is estimated that 10 million adults in the United States suffer from chronic back pain and 1 million seek a surgical remedy each year. Traditional open spine surgery required a large incision down the back, weeks of bed rest and often times more than six months to recover. Patients who have had surgery with the XLIF technique are often walking within a few days and fully recovered in four to six weeks.
Following her first back surgery in 2005, Mrs. Haverty underwent pain management and physical therapy for two-years and still achieved little relief for her pain.
In the summer of 2007, Mrs. Haverty was sent to Dr. Sandhu. She was hoping he would have the permanent fix from her long existing back, hip and leg pains.
Dr. Sandhu took some x-rays then told Mrs. Haverty that he could fix her problem.
“He took the x-rays as a straight-on shot of my back. I had always seen them from a side view of my spine. When he put them up on the light board, my spine looked like an upside-down question mark, it was unbelievable,” she said.
| Video |  | WUSA9 News
XLIF - back surgery with smaller incisions, less blood loss and a shorter recovery period. |
All those years, Mrs. Haverty had been suffering from scoliosis, or a curvature of the spine.
“I basically couldn’t walk for three to four years. I now feel better than I have in years and I can’t tell you how wonderful that is,” says Mrs. Haverty.
XLIF is a surgical option for many that suffer from lower back problems, but not all. The procedure is only an option for the lumbar region of the spine, which is made up of the lower five or six vertebrae.
Media contact:
Marianne Worley
202-444-4659
Patient Contact
202-342-2400 |
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