Managing A Herniated Lumbar Disk
Dr. Leipzig is a board-certified, Salem, Virginia spine surgeon with over two decades of experience. He specializes in procedures including robotic spine surgery, microsurgical lumbar surgery, disc arthroplasty,...
In 2018, Virginia Spine Care became the first Southwest Virginia practice to offer Mazor X robotic spine surgery following Dr. Leipzig’s extensive training in this revolutionary robot-navigated system. In that time, Dr. Leipzig has completed more than 150 robot-guided pedicle screw placements and improved the quality of lives in his patients who’ve undergone minimally invasive spine surgery.
What is Mazor X?
For those not yet familiar with this specialty of our clinic, Mazor X is a guidance system that allows its exclusively trained surgeons to digitally plan an entire treatment strategy before he or she goes into the operating room. The robot features a surgical arm that locks into position to provide a port through which the surgeon operates and duplicates a pre-operative plan.
Why use Mazor X?
In a word: results. Use of the Mazor X has shown extremely high surgical success rates of between 98 to 99 percent. Contrast this to freehand spine surgeries, where about 90 percent of implants are placed accurately. Would you want to be the other 10 percent? In a normal minimally invasive spinal procedure, small incisions are made with an X-ray machine in the room to help guide surgeons and monitor where they are in the spine. With Mazor X, surgeons can create a surgical plan through 3D imaging software, including implant and trajectory placement planning; this pre-planning can occur before or during the procedure, based on the patient circumstances. The technology also shows the procedural approach from a variety of three-dimensional viewpoints, and allows the surgeon to confirm precise placements that can optimize a patient’s outcomes.
What types of spinal conditions can the Mazor X treat?
Not everyone is a candidate for robot-guided surgery, but the Mazor X can aid in a vast array of minimally invasive procedures, including the treatment of spinal fractures, degenerative spine conditions, spinal deformities, spinal fusions and implants, and tumors or other spinal masses.
To date, this innovation continues to be adopted in orthopedic practices across the United States, and just three clinics in the entire state of Virginia utilize Mazor X technology. Research shows that Mazor X patients experience faster recovery, reduced post-operative pain, and lowered surgery complication rates. As an early adopter, Dr. Leipzig also has noted improved surgical accuracy, smaller incisions and less exposure to radiation as additional benefits of this innovation.
Dr. Leipzig is a Virginia spine surgeon with more than two decades of experience, serving the Salem and Roanoke communities. He specializes in procedures including robotic spine surgery, microsurgical lumbar surgery, and disc arthroplasty. To learn more about Mazor X or to schedule an appointment, contact his office at (540) 725-9771.
