In this interview, Dr. Lawrence Menendez discusses total hip arthoplasty and the benefits of the anterior approach. Dr. Menendez is currently an orthopedic surgeon at the University of Southern California Medical Center. Dr. Menendez is one of the designers of an innovative, patent-pending anterior hip retractor system, which aims to help all surgeons perform the anterior approach to hip replacement.

For more information on this revolutionary retractor, click here.

Minimally Invasive spine surgery is no longer an experimental technique.  As research and publications continue to prove the effectiveness of MIS spinal procedures, an increasing number of surgeons have chosen to learn and practice the minimally invasive approach.

The patient benefits of minimally invasive surgeries are numerous.  From a clinical standpoint, operating through a small incision minimizes blood loss, shortens hospital stays, reduces recovery periods, and lessens muscle and tissue disruption when compared to the traditional open procedures. This knowledge has become accepted not only among the medical community, but also among potential patients.  Honing and performing minimally invasive spine surgeries not only prevents surgeons from lagging behind, but can also increase profitability.

The following points points from Becker Orthopedic Spine show the lucrative benefits of adding the MIS technique to your procedural repertoire.

1. Clinical improvements. There are many clinical reasons for performing minimally invasive spine procedures. “From a purely medical standpoint, minimally invasive is better for the patient,” says Dr. Massoud. Better clinical outcomes often lead to happier patients who return for services and recommend friends. Clinical benefits can include:

• Minimized blood loss;
• Less muscle and tissue disruption;
• Shortened hospital stays;
• Reduced recovery period.

2. Referral growth. Knowledge and ability of minimally invasive techniques allow you to perform cases at outpatient surgery centers, which can enhance your profitability. Once you are a partner with an ASC, or have permission to bring cases to the center, that can help you build referrals.

“Other partners of ASCs tend to have referral sources, such as related health care providers,” says Dr. Massoud. To jumpstart increasing patient volume for the practice, identify a high volume partner organization where spine procedures are not currently done. “That can help you build your practice,” says Dr. Massoud. “Plus they can benefit from the ASC membership.” Additionally, if you decide to be a partner at a surgery center you would be a stakeholder and could share in profits from the center.

3. Increases competitiveness. From a practice management standpoint, if you do not offer the latest in spine care you may not grow or remain competitive. According to Dr. Massoud, if you don’t offer the latest technology you will get left behind because people will go elsewhere.

“Frankly, it is important to do minimally invasive techniques to remain competitive,” says Dr. Massoud. Patients already research diseases and ailments on the Internet, so researching spine care and the benefits of minimally invasive techniques is not a stretch.

4. Elevates exposure. Minimally invasive techniques increase your exposure inside and outside your community. If you can build a level of expertise where you become a respected minimally invasive surgeon, you may become involved in a variety of activities that increase your exposure.

“You can receive a teaching affiliation which could really get your name out there. If potential patients research you and see you teach courses at a local university or medical school, and that you are instructing other physicians regularly, they would have more assurance that you are skilled in those techniques,” says Dr. Massoud. “That is how a teaching affiliation becomes valuable for patient referrals.”

5. Improves work balance. When you incorporate minimally invasive techniques into your practice, which increases your marketability to ASCs, many of your procedures may be moved to an outpatient setting. An outpatient setting, especially one in an ASC can dramatically improve your quality of life as a surgeon.

“When you are conducting outpatient surgery, you have more time for other things,” says Dr. Massoud. “You are out of the hospital, so your days are not full of hospital rounds.” Patients only stay in surgery centers for a few hours — so quality of life for surgeons improves personally and professionally. With the extra time, you could work on improving other areas of your practice, like additional training or the marketing and patient outreach of your center or practice to improve profitability.

For most of us, running a marathon is a fantasy— an implausible dream that never comes to fruition. But for the dedicated few, marathon training is a normal activity to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Stacey Hardin of Louisville, Ky. is part of the latter group. A co-owner of a training studio, Stacey is the picture of fitness who helps her clients get in shape. However years of training has taken its toll on Hardin. In 2006, Hardin encountered a hip injury along with arthritis which led to non-stop pain.

“I had people telling me they can’t stand watching me walk. It was very painful. I was on four Advil three times a day and that was just to knock the edge off,” Hardin said. Determined to gain back her health, Hardin had not one, but two hip replacements; one in 2006 on her left hip and another in 2010 on her right. Dr. Jonathan Yerasimides of Norton’s Orthopedic Specialists performed Hardin’s surgeries.
Typically, hip replacement procedures are performed through a posterior incision. Dr. Yerasimides performed the Hardin’s surgery through one incision made in the front of the patient’s anatomy. This innovative approach is known as anterior hip replacement.

“The incision is more up to the front of the thigh rather than a traditional posterior approach which would be more on the buttock. So it’s not directly on the front surface of the thigh but it’s more where a pant pocket would be,” Yerasimides said. Just six weeks after the surgery Hardin was up and running-literally.
Anterior hip replacement surgery provides numerous benefits to the patient. Surgeons are able to operate through a much smaller incision when they operate via the anterior approach. This minimizes tissue trauma and quickens recovery time—enabling Hardin to hit the pavement weeks after surgery.

TeDan Surgical Innovations, recognizing the benefits of minimally invasive anterior hip replacement surgery, recently introduced a revolutionary hip retractor that simplifies the demanding anterior approach. Using this retractor, all orthopedic surgeons will be able to operate through an 8-10cm incision—allowing runners and walkers alike to return to their normal activities weeks after the procedure.

Gone are the days where patients follow the doctor’s orders unquestionably. The internet has enabled patients to explore the myriad of surgical options available to them. Before an internet savvy patient goes under the knife, you can be certain that he will research his procedure, and will frequently come to the conclusion that minimally invasive surgery is his best bet.

With patient requests for minimally invasive procedures increasing, surgeons have developed their skills to meet this demand. While minimally invasive spine surgery has become commonplace, Orthopedic surgeons performing hip replacements are often reluctant to perform the procedure using the minimally invasive approach. People needing a hip implant often have difficulty finding surgeons who are willing to perform minimally invasive hip replacement surgeries.

Minimally Invasive Hip Replacement Surgeries offers the same benefits as does other minimally invasive procedures—a shorter hospital stay, decreased tissue trauma, smaller incision, and expedited patient recovery. Yet only 3-5% of hip replacement surgeries are minimally invasive, despite the demand for it.
Previously, performing minimally invasive hip replacement surgeries required the use of expensive fracture tables or multiple surgical assistant. Hospitals often do not have the resources needed to purchase, store, maintain and operate these fracture tables, and many surgeons do not care to operate with numerous people in the OR. Unfortunately for the patients, the difficulties associated with minimally invasive hip replacements have discouraged many surgeons from offering this technique.

Dr. Lawrence Menendez and Dr. Daniel Allison, orthopedic surgeons from USC recognized thedisparity between supply and demand, and saw an opportunity give all orthopedic surgeons the ability to operate via the minimally invasive, anterior approach.

Dr. Allison shared, “We wanted to create a system that could place the anterior approach to hip replacement into the hands of any orthopedic surgeon, minimizing trauma to the patient’s soft tissues and bone, while taking away the need for any surgical assistants.”

Menendez and Allison teamed with TeDan Surgical to bring their idea of an easy-to-use, minimally invasive hip retractor to fruition. Using a system of flexible arms and attachable retractors, the Phantom MIS Anterior Hip Retractor System completely eliminates the need for a fracture table or surgical assistant. Surgeons are able to operate on a standard OR table independently.
Contact TeDan Surgical Innovations to learn how to get the Phantom Series Minimally Invasive Hip Retractor System into your hands.

Read the press release here

Let’s face it–since their brief Super Bowl playoff streak (yes, they lost every time) in the nineties , the Buffalo Bills have played abysmally: brief moments of success followed by week after week of annihilation on the field. 

The 2011 season offered a glimmer of hope.  Throughout September and October, Buffalo triumphed—a playoff bid seemed possible, fans ecstatic.  Yet this turn of fortune did not last.  The tide turned for the worse in November.  Losses quickly began to outnumber the wins, and the cheers of jubilant fans were quieted.

With the 2011 season over, Buffalo looks ahead to 2012 and, perhaps, a pain-free team.  Buffalo defensive lineman, Torell Troup, announced in December that he will undergo spine surgery in order to repair a “minor fracture”  and rectify a previous disc problem.   Throughout the season Troup suited up and blocked passes while experiencing a significant amount of pain that increased as the season progressed.

Troup’s surgery was  performed in time to have him ready to attend preseason camps.  Prior to surgery, Troupposted on his Twitter account, “I’m ready to get this over so I can be the player I was in the preseason. Will feel good to not be in pain everyday.”    Bills coach Chan Gail is confident that Troup will be ready to suit up for training next spring. 

“Yeah, this is one time I did talk to the doctors, I just happened to be in there when the doctor was there and he explained to me the [spine] surgery and thinks that he’ll be full go by May,” said Gailey.

Could a healthy Troup help the Buffalo Bills achieve the impossible—a chance at the Championship Ring?  It could be that spine surgery will give Buffalo something  to cheer about in the cold winter months of 2012.

With the 2011 season over, Buffalo looks ahead to 2012 and, perhaps, a pain-free team.  http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/story/16431803/bills-troup-to-have-back-surgery-friday

In the past decade, surgeons have touted the benefits of minimally invasive surgery. Minimally Invasive surgeries expedite patient recovery, decrease the length of hospital stays, and reduce the risk for post-operative infections. Surgery is never fun, but opting to go the minimally invasive route can make it less bad.

Now, our beloved pets can also reap the benefits of our scientific advancements. Pets in 2012 live a life of luxury– sweaters, organic dog food, rhinestone collars, and down dog beds. Why not offer our furry friends the best in surgical care?

The University Of Pennsylvania School Of Veterinary Medicine has done just that. A designated minimally invasive suite at the Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital ensures that our companion pets receive the very best in operative care. The suite bears striking resemblance to a hospital OR—fully decked out with fluoroscopes, surgical cameras, and audio/visual equipment that can broadcast procedures in real time.

“We are proud to be leading the charge in these specialized procedures,” said Lillian R. Aronson, VMD, chief of surgery at Ryan Hospital. “Not only will the tools and equipment in this amazing facility allow us to better prepare the next generation of vets with these specialized skills, we will now be capable of providing our clients an option for less-invasive, less painful surgeries for their pets.”

So remember—if your pet needs surgery, opt for minimally invasive and Sparky will be back chasing postmen in no time.

See the Matthew J. Ryan Veterinary Hospital Press release here

Minimally Invasive procedures expedite patient recovery time, decrease the length of hospital stays, and reduce the risk of post-operative infections.   Knowing all of this, why would surgeons opt for the more intrusive open procedures? The answer is simple:  visualization.

Undoubtedly, the chief concern that surgeons have when choosing to operate through a small incision is the difficulty seeing and accessing the surgical site.  During minimally invasive procedures, spine surgeons are confined to the 13-26mm diameter of the dilators. TeDan Surgical, realizing the advantages and drawbacks to the minimally invasive technique, have created a retractor that bridges the visualization gap between minimally invasive and open procedures. Our retractors do one thing our competitors don’t– they pivot.

Once retractor blades have been inserted into the wound site, the TSI pivoting retractor can tow each blade outwards up to 30°, retracting tissue and muscle closest to the wound site without enlarging the incision.  This patented technique optimizes visualization by creating a wider field of vision for the surgeon, yet never increasing the size of the 13-26mm incision.

TSI recognizes the patient benefits of minimally invasive procedures—but understands that if surgeons can’t see, they can’t operate.  So we invented a retractor that pivots, giving surgeons an additional 60° on which to operate.  Experience the difference.  Experience Innovation.