Endoscopic nucleotomy in the cervical spine. A revolutionary surgical  technique.
As opposed to other common surgical procedures, where the entire disk is removed and replaced by a placeholder (cage or artificial replacement), with this special method only the herniated material is removed under local anesthesia.

Endoscopic nucleotomy in the lumbar spine.
If severe pain and neurological symptoms cannot be controlled by conservative care a surgical intervention will be necessary. Aim of the discectomy is to remove the extruded disk tissue and to decompress or to completely set free the pinched nerve.
 

At times an artificial disk replacement may seem indicated to help the patient to get well again. Thanks to progress in implant development modern artificial disk replacements are fitted ideally to the functional setting of the cervical spine and allow for natural movement – preserving by this means the mobility of the neck. Additionally their elasticity lets them work as shock absorbers just like their natural counterparts. This helps to prevent the adjacent sections of the spine from undue stresses.

Degeneration of spinal disks can lead to severe chronic or intermittent back pain with or without radiations into the legs. This pain can have considerable impact on daily life activities. Many patients with degenerative spine disease had disk prolapses in their previous medical history. Whereas on x-ray images disk degeneration will not be readily detectable, the degenerative structures can be clearly seen on magnetic resonance images.

Wir bieten Ihnen die Möglichkeit einer schnellen und effizienten Diagnoseerhebung und Beratung

The surgical therapeutic option for regeneration of pain causing degenerative lumbar disks.

If back pain lasts more than 6 weeks it is considered chronic. Every chronification of pain is a challenge for the treating physician. If conservative treatment options – like physiotherapy, electro- or thermal therapy, and analgesic pain management - do not relieve symptoms within 6 to 8 weeks, ...

Under the direction of APEX SPINE a team of internationally trained physiotherapists, manual therapists, chiropractors, ostheopaths and massage therapists is at your disposal. All therapists are able to determine right from the start the adequate therapeutic procedure and directly apply necessary treatments.

Aim of balloon kyphoplasty is to re-erect and stabilize a compressed vertebral body. This is important as otherwise micro movements will irritate the periosteum (the membrane that lines the outer surface of all bones) and this is a main cause of severe pain. The intervention is carried out in a position such that the curvature of the spine is already leading to erection and decompression of the vertebral body.

The “safe-catheter” therapy has proved very efficient for smaller disk herniations causing very severe back or leg pain, for patients suffering from scarring after a discectomy and for minor degenerative spinal stenoses.

A spinal fusion (fusion and / or stiffening surgery) should always be considered as a last step, since this is an irreversible surgical Eingiff.

Also more and more spinal stenoses that cause unilateral symptoms may be relieved endoscopically.

Endoscopic surgery has proved of value not only for discectomy but also for many other back problems. With this minimally invasive technique all kinds of herniated disks may be removed in a very tissue-preserving way. It may help also with chronic back problems that result from disk protrusions or tears.

Under certain circumstances the dorsal cervical microforaminotomy may be an option to treat a herniated disk of the cervical spine. This may obviate the insertion of an artificial disk replacement or a stiffening surgery. It is possible in cases where the disk material bulges laterally or if a narrowing of a foramen is present only on one side.

Often the desired enlargement of the spinal canal and decompression of the pinched nerves is possible only with a surgical removal of protruding osteophytes. This used to be a complex surgery on the open spinal canal in the past where great parts of the vertebral arches and joints were removed (laminectomy). ...

If bad bone quality (e.g. due to osteoporosis) adds to a traumatic vertebral fracture, a standard balloon cementation (kyphoplasty) of the affected vertebra is often inadequate.