“I have been diligently working in this area for almost 20 years, but in the last two years, I have noticed a palpable change in the environment,” said Choll Kim, MD, PhD, a spine surgeon at Excel Spine in San Diego. “There is now a small cadre of young spine surgeons who have embraced this technology, and have become evangelists.”
More companies are developing endoscopic spine surgery technology for a less invasive procedure, with physicians and surgeons across the U.S. excited to integrate them into their practices. Surgeons are now performing 3D navigation-guided endoscopic lumbar fusion as well as endoscopic transforaminal lumbar interbody fusions, in addition to standard decompressions and discectomies.
“The field of endoscopic spine surgery is on the verge of a tipping point, and will soon be like knee and shoulder arthroscopy,” said Dr. Kim. “Everything, everywhere, all at once.”
