Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers (P) Ltd

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© 2016, Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers

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First Edition: 2016

The goals of any patient undergoing spinal surgery are to realize an excellent clinical outcome with a low risk of complications, minimal peri-operative pain or discomfort and rapid resumption of normal activities. In the past with open spine surgery, certain of these goals were often achieved at the expense of another. As enabling technologies have evolved over the last decades, all of these surgical goals can now be achieved with less invasive surgical techniques. Minimally invasive spine (MIS) surgery has become far more predictable and reproducible and the data supporting these approaches has expanded. As MIS surgical approaches are developed, the challenge of appropriately educating surgeons to achieve proficiency in these techniques is substantial. Open surgical skills do not necessarily translate into MIS skills and a difficult learning curve putting our patients at risk is unacceptable.

Minimally invasive spine surgery has gained significant interest due to the reported expedited postoperative recovery, decreased blood loss, shorter length of hospital stay, and lower postoperative pain as compared to the traditional open techniques. Through carefully curated figures, radiographs, and commentary, this book describes the innovative techniques, evidence, and controversies surrounding minimally invasive spine surgery. We believe that orthopedic surgeons, neurosurgeons, and surgical trainees, such as students, residents, and fellows, will benefit from the step-by-step descriptions of the techniques in the text.

I would like to personally thank Steve Fineberg, Alejandro Marquez-Lara, Sreeharsha Nandyala, and Junyoung Ahn for all their tireless hard work on this book. Every individual on this list has made me proud of what they have accomplished and what they will accomplish as they begin their careers in orthopedic surgery.