Outpatient and minimally invasive spine care are leading the way in the specialty, and Hospital for Special Surgery in West Palm Beach, Fla. is pushing both forward, Sheeraz Qureshi, MD, said.
Dr. Qureshi, chief medical officer of HSS Florida, discussed how Naples, Fla.-based HSS at NCH is helping push those trends ahead.
Note: This conversation was lightly edited for clarity.
Q: What trends are you following in the spine industry right now?
Dr. Sheeraz Qureshi: One thing is the significant shift to minimally invasive and outpatient spine procedures. Cases I used to do that would require a patient to stay in the hospital for multiple days now, with the advancement of enabling technologies, allow me to do things in a less invasive manner and outpatient. Patients can go home the same day and still expect the same excellent outcome, just with a faster recovery. I’m lucky that I get to practice at a place like HSS that allows me to do those kinds of things and allows me to partner with industry in pushing this forward.
The other thing is the non surgical area and how regenerative medicine procedures and non surgical interventions for patients before they get to the point of needing surgery. I often tell patients who come to see me that by the time the problem is so bad they need surgery, it’s sort of too late for regenerative medicine and nonsurgical options to work. The key is really identifying the problem early and trying to use these newer types of procedures that are yet still less proven. But we’re hoping to be part of the group that helps to prove their benefits and when best to use them and their value in treating spine issues.
Q: How are you making headways in these areas at HSS at NCH?
SQ: I think it’s a key part of my vision for the space, and I was super excited when I was able to recruit two world class spine surgeons. We recruited a neurosurgeon who moved from the northeast and an orthopedic spine surgeon who moved from the West Coast. Now they have a space and an enterprise in HSS where they’re able to deliver sort of these outpatient and less invasive procedures. We’ve got all of the latest technology there in terms of surgical robotics and navigation. They also have an amazing partner who came from the Midwest, who’s a non surgical specialist, who’s at the forefront of non operative spine care and regenerative medicine procedures, and they take care of patients side by side.
