Tiger Woods has undergone his fourth back surgery.  Unlike his other surgeries, this most recent procedure was a lumbar fusion.  Tiger has had three prior lumbar discectomies, all done from a posterior approach.  His latest surgery is called an anterior lumbar interbody fusion.  In this procedure, a vertical incision is made below the bellybutton to the pelvis through the abdomen and dissection is carried out to the anterior surface of the lumbar spine.  All of…

A new research study published in Scientific Reports has shown that running may strengthen human intervertebral discs.  The study reported that men and women who participate in a running exercise program may cause the discs to hypertrophy and remain healthy over long periods of time compared to non-runners. The five-year study looked at men and women between the ages of 25 and 35 and separated them into three groups: those who were inactive; those who…

Stephen P. Banco, M.D. from Keystone Spine & Pain Management Center received a 5-star rating, the highest rating possible, from Consumers’ Checkbook (checkbook.org), also known as The Center for the Study of Services. Consumers’ Checkbook is funded by consumers for consumers. Unlike most other ratings websites, this nonprofit organization takes no advertising or similar payments from businesses or professionals. For more than twenty years, this website has evaluated hospital and surgeon performance using data obtained…

There are few things that compare to a warm, sunny day in the summer where the whole family jumps in the car and heads over to the nearest amusement park to enjoy a day of laughs and thrills. Millions of people each year line up for roller coasters around countless amusement parks across the country. Unfortunately, some of these high-speed rides can have painful consequences. Roller coasters and amusement parks are some of the most…

Medical Researchers in Melbourne, Australia have created a new bionic spine that will give those suffering from spinal cord injuries hope to walk again using the power of thought. The minimally-invasive brain-machine interface consists of a stent-based electrode implanted within a blood vessel next to the brain, which then records the type of neural activity that pre-clinical trials have shown to move limbs through an exoskeleton or bionic limbs. The concept is similar to a…

The 3-D printer is a relatively new invention that has greatly impacted manufacturing. 3-D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, layers various materials, particularly plastics, to create a three-dimensional object from a computer file. It creates extremely precise structures and when applied to the medical field, 3-D printing provides doctors with an alternative method to bone replacement. Prior to 3-D printing, the best method to treating people in need of a bone replacement was to…