Professor Arun Ranganathan, one of the leading spinal surgeons in the UK, has operated on many high-profile patients, from royal family members to fellow spine and orthopaedic surgeons and is referred to as ‘the surgeon’s surgeon’. Here, he shares his thoughts on the current developments in spinal surgery and future concepts.
As an ageing population, more patients are requiring interventions to manage back and neck pain. Mostly this is a benign mechanical or muscular dysfunction, but can occasionally be a result of a more serious condition such as a deformity, tumour or infection.
Spinal surgery is supported by many other medical specialities and ancillary treatments, concentrating their attention on the mobility of the spine and reducing the number of surgical candidates. When faced with a definite, and sometimes urgent need for surgery, the surgeon has a number of factors to consider.
Rapid recovery spine surgery
Sciatica is a prolapsed disc pressing on the nerve causing shooting pain radiating from the back into the leg, that can often be debilitating. The pain often settles down within a few weeks but sometimes it can be non-responsive to analgesics leading to weakness in the foot. If this is the case, we would usually treat with a steroid injection in the back. This is a quick procedure and often reduces the neural inflammation enough to alleviate any pain or numbness. If the prolapse is too large or the steroid injections aren’t effective, surgery may be the only option, but with minimal access surgical techniques and equipment, it is now possible to do this surgery as a day case through a very small incision. This surgery allows the patient to return to normal activities and work very quickly as the muscles are preserved.
This latest technology allows surgeons to perform more complicated surgery such as tumour removal as key-hole surgery, allowing patients to leave the hospital within 24 hours, with excellent clinical outcomes. They often return to work within a week and generally sport is possible within a month.
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