November 15, 2006
Genesis to Webcast Minimally-Invasive Lumbar Fusion
DAVENPORT, Iowa – An innovative, minimally-invasive procedure to alleviate back pain caused by a torn disc will be the first Quad Cities surgery of its kind to be shown on an Internet webcast.
The webcast scheduled for 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 5 will feature a procedure called Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion, or TLIF, performed by Anthony V. Maioriello, M.D., Quad City Neurosurgical Associates, P.C. The surgical webcast originates from Operating Room 5 at Genesis Medical Center, West Central Park, Davenport.
The surgery will be available for viewing from the home page of the award-winning Genesis Health System Internet site, www.genesishealth.com, by clicking on “Watch A Surgery” or “Genesis Today,” and then on the link to the webcast.
Genesis is one of about 40 hospitals across the nation working with Internet health care broadcaster slp3D of Connecticut as it pioneers a unique reality programming called OR-Live. Its surgical webcasts make viewers feel like they’re right in the operating room while the procedure is underway. A host moderates and helps to explain the surgery.
“Genesis is responding to the new consumerism that drives people to play a more active role in their health care decisions,” said Ken Croken, Vice President of Genesis Corporate Communications and Marketing. “We live in an age where consumers have grown accustomed to seeing reality programming, so this is a logical step for health care.
“We can educate a far-reaching audience on the advantages of this surgical procedure and promote the excellent care Genesis patients receive through our program.”
In the procedure, Dr. Maioriello will use muscle-splitting dilator tubes to access the lumbar spine through a small skin incision and tunnels created by separating muscle along its natural divisions. The damaged disc is removed and a bone graft is packed in the disc space along with a plastic cage that supports the spine as the fusion takes place.
Using the CD HorizonÒ SextantÒ Spinal System, screws are then inserted on each side of the vertebrae using muscle-recording equipment for added safety. Once these screws are in place, they are attached to metal rods, creating an internal brace that supports the vertebral bodies as the fusion heals into a solid block of bone.
The minimally invasive procedure offers patient benefits that include shorter hospital stays, smaller scars, shorter recovery periods and less post-operative pain than with the more traditional open surgery approach, which requires a large incision down the middle of the back.
Dr. Maioriello stresses this is not a surgery for everyone with back pain. In two and half years, he has performed about 100 lumbar fusions – the majority of which have been minimally invasive.
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