Endoscopic surgery procedure overview

There are many spine conditions that are treated at Laser Spine Institute. All procedures are uniquely designed and developed to provide patients with the best possible medical care.

See an actual Laser Spine Institute endoscopic procedure from an episode of "The Doctors" show

Watch an innovative spinal procedure that is much less invasive than open back surgery. Orthopedic spine surgeon, Dr. James St. Louis, from the Laser Spine Institute in Tampa performs endoscopic surgery on Kate.

View Kate's surgery follow up

Below are spine procedures performed on patients at Laser Spine Institute.

Foraminotomy - laser assisted

To relieve pressure on nerves compressed within the intervertebral foramen.

Conditions such as foraminal narrowing caused by bulging discs, herniated discs, scar tissue, bone spurs, thickening of the ligament and facet hypertrophy can be treated with a foraminotomy.

Laminotomy - laser assisted

To relieve pressure on the spinal cord compressed by spinal stenosis.

Conditions such as spinal stenosis that are caused by a herniated disc, bulging disc, bone spurs, hypertrophy of the ligament flavum, facet hypertrophy and scar tissue can be approached surgically by doing a laminotomy.

Endoscopic Discectomy - laser assisted

To remove the portion of a herniated or bulging disc that is pressing on a nerve root or the spinal cord.

Our surgeons utilize tiny cameras in order to see what is compressing the nerve and remove it without causing any destabilization of the spine.

Facet Thermal Ablation - laser based

To debride the facet joint and deaden the nerves of the facet utilizing a laser inside a 2mm tube. Learn more about the Facet Thermal Ablation procedure.

The type of procedures that are performed depends on the pathology that the surgeon is treating.

Most patients have multiple conditions occurring at once and may require a combination of techniques that include, for example, both a foraminotomy and a laminotomy. There are many times when a patient will have symptoms relative to a pinched nerve caused by spinal stenosis or foraminal narrowing as well as having back pain secondary to arthritis of the spine (facet disease).

At Laser Spine Institute, we frequently treat multiple conditions at one time so that the patient does not have to return, keeping time and cost at a minimum. Since the procedures are minimally invasive and recuperation time is negligible compared to open neck or back surgeries, it is not any more difficult on the patient to treat more than one condition at a time. It allows our patients to return to their lives sooner and enjoy it to the fullest.

Operative Procedures

During an endoscopic procedure, the surgeon places the first tube into a small incision. A series of tubes of increasing size are placed over this first tube, one at a time, to slowly create the opening to the spine. That means we can perform spine procedures with minimal damage to the surrounding muscles. The muscles are split between their fibers and are not torn or cut. The last tube is about 18 millimeters in diameter and through this, working tube we can insert the lasers, cameras, suction, irrigation and other surgical instruments. Once everything is in place, the surgeon can begin removing the bone and tissue that is compressing the nerve.