Surgeons are currently testing a joint replacement device for the spine, which could provide relief for patients with back and leg pain.
The new joint replacement could be beneficial for sufferers of spinal stenosis - a condition involving the narrowing of space in the spine which causes pain from pressure on the spinal cord and nerves.
Traditionally, the condition has been treated with spinal surgery to remove the narrowed section of bone and tissue and to fuse the nearby spinal sections together.
However, early results from trial surgeries involving the new procedure have been positive, according to manufacturer Archus Orthopedics.
Dr Michael Halperin, an orthopaedic surgeon at the William W. Backus Hospital, one of the eight sites testing the new joint replacement device, told the Norwich Bulletin: "We're doing the old form of surgery to take pressure off the nerve, but now to restabilise (the spine) we put in an artificial joint, which would be similar to an artificial hip or knee."
According to Dr Halperin, the new spinal surgery requires less operating time and provides a speedier recovery and continued mobility.
In addition, the new joint does not put additional stress on the adjacent joints in the way that fusion treatment does, thereby reducing the likelihood of future problems.
© Adfero Ltd
The new joint replacement could be beneficial for sufferers of spinal stenosis - a condition involving the narrowing of space in the spine which causes pain from pressure on the spinal cord and nerves.
Traditionally, the condition has been treated with spinal surgery to remove the narrowed section of bone and tissue and to fuse the nearby spinal sections together.
However, early results from trial surgeries involving the new procedure have been positive, according to manufacturer Archus Orthopedics.
Dr Michael Halperin, an orthopaedic surgeon at the William W. Backus Hospital, one of the eight sites testing the new joint replacement device, told the Norwich Bulletin: "We're doing the old form of surgery to take pressure off the nerve, but now to restabilise (the spine) we put in an artificial joint, which would be similar to an artificial hip or knee."
According to Dr Halperin, the new spinal surgery requires less operating time and provides a speedier recovery and continued mobility.
In addition, the new joint does not put additional stress on the adjacent joints in the way that fusion treatment does, thereby reducing the likelihood of future problems.
© Adfero Ltd
Orthopaedic surgery (spinal surgery) news : 30/01/2007
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