Private hospital in city successfully performs pinhole spine surgery on 75-year-old patient

Avoiding open surgery, a private hospital in the city performed a pinhole spine surgery on a 75-year-old patient who had been struggling with severe back pain and difficulty walking due to nerve compression caused by age-related spinal degeneration.

The minimally invasive procedure, called Endoscopic Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion, relieved the pressure on the nerves and stabilised the spine by fusing the affected vertebrae, according to a release from MGM Healthcare Malar, Adyar.

Patient stable within hours

The patient was able to walk within hours after the surgery and was discharged the next day, Vignesh Pushparaj, Senior Consultant Orthopaedic Spine Surgeon said.

Instead of opting for conventional open spine surgery, which in elderly patients can be associated with larger wounds, prolonged anaesthesia, greater blood loss, higher infection risk and delayed mobilization, the team chose a minimally invasive “pinhole” approach, Dr. Pushparaj added.