The use of endoscopic techniques has enabled important progress in the field of minimally invasive surgery, permitting access to deep sites through small incisions and work procedures that cause minimum damage to tissues.
Thanks to high definition cameras, it is possible to easily have a close-up view of the surgical field.
Thoracoscopic spine surgery is a relatively modern technique used for the surgical treatment of spinal disease with the same effectiveness as open surgery.
The advantages of thoracoscopic spine surgery include small incisions, less damage to tissues, less bleeding, shorter surgery times, less postoperative pain and fast mobilisation, recovery and patient discharge.
Thoracoscopic spine surgery is now widely used to treat tumoural, traumatic and degenerative pathologies, infections and sympathectomy.
For example:
- Tumours of the nervous system (Neurofibromas, Schwannomas) or bone tumours.
- Discectomy: Herniated dorsal and calcified discs.
- Corpectomy and vertebral reconstruction with anterior screws-plates and intersomatic fixations to treat fractures, pseudoarthrosis, kyphosis, scoliosis or tumoural pathologies.
- Abscess drainage: Tuberculosis or other infections.
- Diagnostic biopsies (infections or tumours).
- Sympathectomy: Hyperhidrosis surgery (excessive sweating of the hands), Raynaud’s phenomenon, reflex sympathetic dystrophy.
Just like any surgical technique, thoracoscopic spine surgery also has contraindications including:
Important heart-coronary disease, lung disease, coagulopathy (risk of bleeding), previous surgery or traumatisms that generate fibrosis and adherences.
