Dr. Barry Lurate, a board-certified orthopedic surgeon at Sacred Heart Hospital, is the first physician in Northwest Florida to offer minimally invasive spinal surgery as an alternative to traditional fusion procedures.
The procedure, known as axial lumbar interbody fusion, or AxiaLF, is performed through one or two small, one-inch incisions in the lower back, as compared with a five- to six-inch incision used in the traditional surgery. The procedure involves minimum, if any, violation of the muscles and supporting structures of the spine.
"Spine surgery represents some of the most complex and challenging surgery for both surgeon and patient, and extensive dissection and reconstruction may lead to a good looking X-ray but an unhappy patient," says Dr. Lurate. "At times the surgery 'cure' may be part of the problem, and we constantly have to balance this with minimally invasive techniques that don't do enough to fix the problem."
During the procedure, Dr. Lurate uses a small catheter to enter the spinal column at the tailbone and then follows the natural contours of the spine to reach the damaged discs. Once at the site, he is able to remove the center of the diseased disc and insert bone growth material in its place, resulting in a spinal fusion over time.
In traditional surgery, surgeons risked damaging the back and spine by retracting and stripping the muscles and ligaments from the spine to get to the diseased disk, by attempting to bypass major arteries and nerves, and by cauterizing some of the blood vessels. This often required two to four days of hospitalization and two to six months of recovery at home.
"In my opinion, the AxiaLF technique represents a significant advance in spine surgery, and it provides an elegant way to solve specific disabling back problems," says Dr. Lurate.
With the AxiaLF surgery, patients like Navarre resident Leandra Skinner, a patient of Dr. Lurate, are often up and walking with little pain after 24 hours of surgery and typically requires an overnight stay at the hospital.
"Before the surgery, I couldn't do anything, even walking, without constant pain," said Skinner. "After the surgery, I was back to work in a week, and after a few months I could actually bend over and touch the floor - something I never could have done before."
Dr. Lurate performed the minimally invasive procedure on Skinner in July of 2007, and today, she has a new lease on life and is finally starting to live pain-free.
"I had chronic back pain for over three years, but I was scared of having back surgery," said Skinner. "Now I feel so great that I wish I had done it sooner."
For more information on minimally invasive spinal fusion surgery and other orthopedic services offered at Sacred Heart, please call (850) 416-1600 or visit our website at www.sacred-heart.org.
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