World Neurosurg
-
Cessation of elective procedures and lower bed capacity during the COVID-19 pandemic have led to a rise in the waiting lists for surgery, but it is unclear if workload has recovered sufficiently to account for this backlog. We describe the change in neurosurgical workload at a tertiary neurosciences center in the United Kingdom after the first pandemic wave in comparison with the months before and during the first wave. ⋯ In the aftermath of COVID-19, higher referral volumes and operative procedures were apparent in the post-wave months as services returned to normal. With the expectation of a second wave of infections, it is unclear whether this will be sustainable.
-
To emphasize the importance of vertebral artery (VA) mobilization by reviewing the anatomy and variations of the VA while performing total resection of VA-associated tumors that develop from different tissues. ⋯ VA mobilization reduces the need for instrumentation in VA-related cases, especially nerve tumors, and increases the possibility of the surgical resection of vertebral tumors.
-
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has recommended the temporary cessation of all elective surgeries. The effects on patients' interest of elective neurosurgical procedures are currently unexplored. ⋯ With the recommendation for cessation of elective surgeries, patient interests in overall elective neurosurgical procedures have dropped significantly. With gradual reopening, there has been a resurgence in some procedure types. Google Trends has proven to be a useful tracker of patient interest and may be used by neurosurgical departments to facilitate outreach strategies.
-
This video describes an awake robotic minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF). Minimally invasive spine surgery leads to reduced perioperative morbidity while accelerating recovery by limiting soft tissue damage, blood loss, and postoperative pain. Robotic guidance systems have recently emerged to increase accuracy of instrumentation placement, reduce radiation burden, and enhance surgical ergonomics. ⋯ Given that the patient failed conservative measures, and considering that she had severe nausea and delirium after general anesthesia, she was offered an awake L4-5 robotic TLIF using the Mazor X robotic guidance system (Medtronic, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA) (Video 1). We document the first awake robotic TLIF in the literature. This video describes how to efficiently insert robotic techniques into the awake spine workflow.1,2.
-
This study aimed to assess the feasibility of using the 3-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction technique based on ultrathin cryomilling to show the lumbar intervertebral foraminal ligaments in situ. ⋯ The 3-D reconstruction technique based on ultrathin cryomilling can effectively show the lumbar intervertebral foraminal ligaments and their anatomical characteristics in situ, providing a new way to clarify the relationships between these ligaments and their adjacent structures.