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Offers New Procedures for Patients Suffering Back Pain
 Brattleboro
Memorial Hospital orthopedic surgeon Jon Thatcher, MD,
has been trained in two relatively new services for
patients with certain back problems: balloon kyphoplasty,
a minimally invasive spinal surgical procedure to treat
progressive vertebra problems such as compression fractures
from osteoporosis, and X-Stop, a device for lumbar spinal
stenosis.
Dr. Thatcher has been using kyphoplasty to successfully
treat patients with painful osteoporotic backs and other
problems associated with age-related softening of bones
or certain forms of cancer. The kyphoplasty procedure
involves the use of a balloon to restore the vertebral
body height and shape, which is followed by bone cement
to strengthen it. The procedure is usually performed
under general anesthesia, and patients can often go
home the same day. Patients, who have no restrictions,
can go back to normal activities of daily living as
soon as possible. Because bone cement hardens within
15 minutes, there is really no healing that needs to
happen from the patient's standpoint. They are able
to return to all of their pre-procedure function, and
do not typically need any form of physical therapy or
rehabilitation after a kyphoplasty procedure. This procedure
usually offers excellent pain relief from the vertebral
body collapse. Well over 95 percent of patients rate
their treatment a success.
A newer procedure offered by Dr. Thatcher called X-Stop
is now available to patients who suffer from pain caused
by lumbar spinal stenosis. This condition develops when
there is a narrowing of the spinal canal which then
compresses the nerves traveling through the lower back
into the legs. Kyphon Inc.’s X-Stop® is actually
a titanium spacer the fits between the spinous processes
of the lower (lumbar) spine. It is easily implanted
as an outpatient procedure in many patients, and is
fully reversible. X-Stop has been called “a new
generation of back treatment,” and is said to
be “way ahead of whatever’s in second place,”
by one of the first surgeons in New England to use the
X-Stop implant. This new procedure avoids the need for
a laminectomy (removal of bone that is pinching the
nerve to relieve symptoms of spinal stenosis). This
procedure does not go near the joint or nerve, hence
avoiding risks associated with a laminectomy. This procedure
underwent a full clinical trial prior to receiving FDA
approval two years ago.
If you feel any of these conditions relate to you,
please consult your primary care physician for evaluation
and possible referral to Dr. Thatcher. CLICK HERE for
more information on Dr. Thatcher.
CLICK HERE
for information on another procedure for back pain.
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