Perhaps you have heard about minimally invasive spine surgery as an alternative to open spine surgery before, but weren't quite sure what it is or what it entails. True, minimally invasive surgery is an alternative to open surgery, and is becoming more and more prevalent. However, the sudden surge of this type of surgery is not because it is a type of surgery recently discovered and suddenly utilized. In fact, minimally invasive spine surgeries have been performed for decades now, and the practice is well beyond anything that could be considered exploratory or experimental. If you've thought seriously about minimally invasive surgery, you probably want to learn as much about it as possible, and the following seeks to do just that for you.

A Few Minor Distinctions

Open spine surgery and minimally invasive spine surgery differ in many ways, some of which are discussed in greater detail below. In a general sense, minimally invasive surgeries can be completed on an outpatient basis, meaning that no overnight hospital stay is required; open surgeries typically require at least one night's stay in a hospital or medical center. Furthermore, open spine surgeries tend to require general anesthesia to completely sedate patients throughout the course of the operation; minimally invasive spine surgeries typically use only local anesthesia …show more content…
After a large incision is cut into the back, neck, or abdomen, the surgeon will expose the section of the spine in order for the spinal abnormality to be visible by the naked eye. Then, a series of surgical tools are utilized to complete the operation before stitching up the large incision. Minimally invasive surgery requires an incision no larger than an inch in diameter. The procedure is guided by an endoscope, a small laser, and other small surgical tools that all fit into the spinal anatomy without increasing the size of the initial