Q&A

Minimally invasive spine surgery allows patients to get out of bed sooner than with traditional surgery. Approximately 98% of patients can get out of bed the day after surgery.

The hospital stay ranges from 1 to ５ days post-surgery, depending on the patient’s condition and the type of procedure.

As literature suggests, minimally invasive surgery significantly shortens both hospital stays and recovery periods.

Regarding rehabilitation, due to reduced soft tissue damage, the rehabilitation period is greatly shortened. In some cases, rehabilitation may not even be necessary.

ou can walk and climb stairs as normal after surgery. However, for the first two weeks, it is recommended to rest as much as possible. After two weeks, you may gradually resume exercise based on your physical capacity, but avoid overexertion or strenuous activity.

With accurate diagnosis, advanced medical equipment, and specialized surgical techniques, it is possible to successfully treat failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS), also known as post-laminectomy syndrome.

• Revision Spine Surgery Success Case 1
• Revision Spine Surgery Success Case 2
• Revision Spine Surgery Success Case 3

For most minimally invasive cervical spine surgeries, the nerve-related pain and numbness can be significantly improved post-surgery, and rehabilitation is generally not required. However, in cases of severe nerve compression, temporary weakness may occur after surgery. This condition is typically resolved within six months post-operation.

Most surgeons are more familiar with the traditional posterior approach for spine fusion surgeries, which typically involves a 10–15 cm incision along the back. Even with computer-assisted navigation in minimally invasive methods, the posterior approach requires direct decompression of nerves, often causing damage to the fascia, muscles, tendons, facet joints, and lamina around the spine. This leads to significant structural disruption, longer operative times, and greater blood loss during surgery. The extent of tissue damage in traditional methods also results in more postoperative pain and longer recovery times.
OLIF, on the other hand, uses a small incision on the lateral abdominal area to access the spine directly, avoiding the complex layers of muscles and tissues in the back. This approach significantly reduces the side effects associated with traditional spine surgeries, leading to minimal tissue damage, reduced blood loss, and faster recovery. Moreover, OLIF minimizes nerve and vascular injuries, enabling most patients to walk on the same day of surgery.

The indications for OLIF (Oblique Lateral Interbody Fusion) are broad and primarily include conditions such as sciatica, herniated discs, degenerative spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, lumbar instability, adjacent segment disease after lumbar surgery, and recurrent issues in patients who have previously undergone posterior spinal surgeries. These conditions can all be treated using the minimally invasive OLIF technique via the anterior-lateral approach for spinal fusion.