1. Researching
Laser Spine Facilities

2. If you are researching laser spine facilities, your doctor has likely
recommended that you to consider undergoing surgery to treat a
spine condition. It’s important to remember that, regardless of
whether you’re living with a herniated disc in the lumbar (lower
back) region of your spine or are suffering from cervical (neck) facet
joint disease, surgery should typically be reserved as a final
treatment option.
However, you may be a candidate for spine surgery if conservative,
nonsurgical therapies, such as pain medication, physical therapy,
anti-inflammatory drugs, and others have failed to provide
meaningful relief within several weeks or months. Before you
consent to any surgical procedure, it is in your best interest to
research the laser spine facilities in which you may be interested,
find out what conditions they are able to treat, and what
procedures may be available to you.

3. Conditions Treated
While laser spine facilities can be different from one another in terms
of size, amenities, experience, etc., in general, they can help treat a
number of degenerative back and neck conditions, including:
• Bulging discs
• Herniated discs
• Sciatica
• Spinal stenosis
• Foraminal stenosis
• Bone spurs
• Facet joint disease
• Low-grade spondylolisthesis

4. Types of Procedures Offered
Typically, the orthopedic experts at laser spine facilities
are able to perform a variety of specific procedures aimed
at decompressing neural structures that have been
affected by bulging and herniated discs, bone spurs,
spinal osteoarthritis, and other anatomical abnormalities
via minimally invasive techniques. These techniques
might include using an endoscope, laser, and tiny surgical
tools to excise or vaporize only the portions of bone
material or soft tissues that are impinging neural
structures in the spine.

5. Common Procedures
Many back and neck surgeries traditionally performed through an open back or
open neck approach can be performed using a minimally invasive, endoscopic
techniques. Some of the most common endoscopic spinal procedures include:
• Foraminotomy – removal of excess bone and soft tissue to clear out a
foramen, or a channel through which a spinal nerve root exits the spinal
canal. This procedure increases the space surrounding a compressed nerve
root to help relieve pressure.
• Laminotomy – removal of a portion of lamina bone, or the thin plates that
protect the back side of the spinal cord. This operation increases the space
surrounding an impinged spinal cord to help relieve pressure.
• Discectomy – removal or vaporizing of disc material that has bulged or
herniated into the spinal canal and come into contact with neural structure.
• Facet thermal ablation – deadening of the medial branch nerves that
innervate an arthritic facet joint to help relieve joint pain.

6. Additional Options
Certain laser spine facilities may even offer disc regeneration and minimally invasive stabilization
(MIS) procedures, which provide patients with even more technologically and surgically advanced
alternatives to open spine surgery.
The disc regeneration procedure uses a patient’s own stem cells in combination with low-level
laser decompression to not only relieve the pressure placed on neural structures, but to also
promote the repair and healing of a deteriorated disc, which may help prevent future painful disc
problems.
The MIS procedure is an alternative to highly invasive complete disc removal and spinal fusion
surgery, which is sometimes necessary for patients suffering from severe spinal degeneration.
Now, with an outpatient MIS procedure, patients who are candidates for this type of procedure
can avoid the large incisions, muscle dissection, and lengthy recovery commonly associated with
open spine spinal fusion. Instead, the same endoscopic techniques used in laser spine procedures
are utilized to access the affected area of the spine, decompress neural structures, and remove a
degenerated disc. Then, a supportive implant is funneled through the tube and placed in the
empty disc space, followed by bone graft material. Screws and rods or a small metal plate are
used to permanently join the two adjacent vertebrae together and promote healing.

7. Are You A Candidate?
Although the procedures offered at laser spine facilities
may be appealing, you should know that not every
individual is a candidate for a minimally invasive
procedure. If your doctor has asked you to consider
undergoing surgery to treat your back or neck condition,
ask him or her whether an endoscopic procedure is an
option for you. It might even be advantageous for you to
seek a second opinion at a laser spine facility, which can
help you find out if laser surgery is even an option in your
case.