Endoscopic Spine Surgery in Pune

If you are searching the best way to relieve pain in your neck or arm or back, you are at right place. Welcome to Dr. Pradyumna Pai Raiturker’s spine clinic in Pune which is amongst the finest centers for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (MISS) and Endoscopic Spine Procedures in Pune.

Dr. Pradyumna Pai Raiturkaris one of the best spine specialists in Pune who has been trained at some of the most prestigious and renowned medical institutions in the world. He has completed MS, DNB, M.N.A.M.S and is currently affiliated with Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Pune.

What is Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery?

In minimally invasive spine surgery and endoscopic spine procedures, a very small incision is made using an endoscope. Entry and repair is achieved without harming nearby muscles and tissues when using minimally invasive techniques. This is great news for all those patients who are candidates for a surgery.

Advantages of MISS:

Small incisions
Small surgical scars
Lower infection rate
Less trauma to the body
Less blood loss
Less post-operative pain
Quicker recovery
Shorter hospitalization

Consult with Dr. Pradyumna Raiturker and find out if Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery is the best option for your spine problem.

Any operation when it is suggested to a patient it is a traumatic event for him /her. Especially if it is a spinal surgery. Traditional outcomes with Spine surgery had been so variable that the General population is still apprehensive and trying to avoid spine surgery just based on beliefs of complications.

A slipped disc is a common cause of back pain and leg pain (Sciatica). Most slipped discs have a self limiting natural history and require watchful expectancy but unfortunately around 10 per cent of patients end up requiring surgery due to severity of symptoms or due to early signs of nerve damage secondary to persistent pressure.

With better Imaging modalities like MRI and CT scan now spine surgeons are equipped with the precise and accurate diagnosis of the pathology and know the exact location of the herniated disc and location.

Traditional open surgery for Sciatica caused by a slipped disc is performed through an operation called a microdisectomy. This involves making a cut of 5 to 10 cm in the back and damaging the muscles and the bones of the spine to remove the offending disc. Open techniques provide the surgeon with easy access to the spinal anatomy. The downside of “open” spine surgery is that the muscle retraction damages the spinal muscles and can cause significant post-operative pain. In addition, “open” surgery can result in increased blood loss, larger scars and relatively long recovery times.

A basic tenet of surgery is to effectively treat pathology with minimal disturbance of normal anatomy: leaving “the smallest footprint.” Minimalism was a dream earlier but now it is a reality. Following the same principle and with developments in medical equipment, technology and energy sources like radiofrequency and Lasers a new option called key-hole endoscopic spine surgery is now available. This procedure can be performed on a significant number of patients who would otherwise have to endure open surgery and the whole procedure is performed through a cut no bigger than 8mm using the endoscope (microscopic camera).

If you are suffering from low-back pain and have been searching for minimally invasive spine surgery or laser spine surgery, schedule an appointment with expert spine surgeon in Pune, Dr. Pradyumna Pai Raiturker.

The procedure takes about an hour and there aren’t any stitches — after the endoscope is removed a plaster is simply put over the small cut. Patients may feel a little pain or discomfort afterwards and are given paracetamol to take if they need it for the first 24 hours. Most can walk straight away within two hours. While the success rate of this procedure is about the same as open conventional back surgery — around 95 per cent — there are huge advantages for patients.

As it is not open surgery there are fewer complications; there is a lower risk of blood clots forming, scarring, blood loss and infection, no danger of spinal fluid leaking and minimal risk of injury to the nerves, and none of the side-effects associated with a general anaesthetic.

With conventional surgery, about 20 per cent of patients develop scar tissue around the nerves which can cause recurrence of symptoms, while with keyhole surgery there is no risk of scarring.

Recovery is quicker and less painful because the muscles in the back are not cut during the operation.

Despite these advantages, few surgeons offer this technique because it requires specialist training — the operation here is undertaken by Dr Pradyumna Pai Raiturkar, Consultant Spine Surgeon.

Having performed more than 500 such procedures over the last 10 years vast experience.

There are still situations where a microdiscectomy is still preferred, but recently, more and more conditions are being surgically treated using Transoraminal percutaneous endoscopic Discectomy.

Dr Pradyumna Pai Raiturker is a spine surgeon who has experience with minimally invasive and traditional spinal surgery and thus can help patients make educated decisions about their treatment. Please schedule a consultation with our spine specialists to learn more about the treatment options that are available, and which are best for you.

What is Endoscopic Spine Surgery?

The back is comprised of many interlocking bones, discs, ligaments, tendons and nerves, and sometimes it can be difficult to identify a single cause of back pain. When a specific cause is identified, it usually stems from an abnormality that is quite small. With traditional spine surgeries, sometimes healthy body tissues must be cut and large incisions are required to obtain the visibility needed to correct the problem. Endoscopic spine surgery addresses this challenge by using an endoscope, an instrument that acts as an eye inside the patient’s back, to see and correct the faulty structures while avoiding extensive tissue damage.

The Endoscope: "Smaller than your finger"

This is a small, tubular medical instrument that uses light and water to visualize a patient’s spine from the inside out. The lens of the scope is shaped at an angle that allows the surgeon to clearly see abnormalities around and under the physical structures of the back. Other medical instruments are inserted through the endoscope, so only one 7.9 mm incision is needed.

Benefits of Endoscopic Surgery Include:

Very small incisions
Reduced recovery and rehabilitation time
Less pain
Decreased risk of infection
Minimal damage to surrounding, healthy tissues
Lower cost

Conditions that Endoscopic Surgery Can Help

Disc herniation is a condition where the shock-absorbing disc located between the vertebrae bulges out from its normal position due to a tear within the disc. The bulged portion can place pressure on the spinal nerve roots. Symptoms can vary in their severity depending on how far the disc displaces and whether the disc remains intact or ruptures.

Lateral spinal stenosis is a condition where the passageway of a spinal nerve along the side of a vertebra is narrowed. When this occurs, the smaller passage can constrict or irritate the nerve.

You can send a private question or schedule an appointment with Dr. Pradyumna Raiturker to understand if a minimally invasive spine surgery (MISS) is an option for you.

Dr. Pradyumna Pai Raiturkar

MS, DNB, MNAMS | Spine Surgeon