Becker's Spine Review

6 SPINE SURGEONS M6-C vs. ACDF: The Spine Journal publishes 2-year study data By Alan Condon A study published in The Spine Journal found that Or- thofix's M6-C artificial cervical disc was safe, effective and noninferior to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion for the treatment of cervical disc degeneration. The two-year study, conducted at 23 U.S. sites, evaluated the safety and efficacy of M6-C compared to ACDF for the treat- ment of single-level symptomatic cervical radiculopathy with or without spinal cord compression. "Patients with degenerative cervical radiculopathy treated with the M6-C disc had significant improvements in neck and arm pain, function and quality of life scores," Frank Phillips, MD, co-author of the study, said in a Jan. 28 news release. Furthermore, M6-C patients had a notable reduction of pain and opioid use compared to ACDF patients, Dr. Phillips said. "At 24 months, patients in the ACDF group who were still us- ing pain medications had a seven times higher rate of opioid use than those in the M6-C disc group." The two-year study compared 160 M6-C subjects to a matched subset of 189 ACDF controls. The overall success rate for the primary endpoint for the M6-C disc patients was 86.8 percent at 24 months and 79.3 percent in the control group. n Endoscopic procedures 'truly the next generation of spine surgery,' says Dr. Kern Singh By Alan Condon K ern Singh, MD, lauded the benefits of en- doscopic spine surgery, which he typically performs as an awake outpatient procedure at Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush in Chicago. "This is truly the next generation of spine surgery," Dr. Singh said in a Jan. 27 news release. "I've been per- forming minimally invasive spine surgery for 13 years and now with the endoscopic procedure, my patients are out of the surgery center in usually half the time." In addition to shorter surgery times, other benefits in- clude no bleeding, no opioids after surgery, no gen- eral anesthesia and quicker recovery times, according to the report. Awake endoscopic procedures avoid intubation, protecting staff from exposure to respiratory secre- tions directly from the lung — a significant advantage during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many surgeons believe endoscopic procedures will spike in adoption as outpatient migration of spine surgeries continues to accelerate. n Tiger Woods undergoes 5th spine surgery By Laura Dyrda T iger Woods underwent a fifth spine surgery in January, which will keep him out of competition in the near future, according to ESPN. 1. According to a Jan. 19 statement posted to Mr. Woods' Twitter account, he underwent a microdiscectomy to remove a pressurized disc fragment that was pinching his nerve. 2. The statement said Mr. Woods' physicians deemed the procedure successful and they expect him to fully recover. Mr. Woods aims to re-join the PGA Tour but will not compete at two upcoming events. 3. Mr. Woods underwent three microdiscectomy procedures between 2014-15 before undergoing a spinal fusion in April 2017. n 'Dr. Death' patient dies By Alan Condon J erry Summers has died 10 years after former neu- rosurgeon Christopher Duntsch, MD, performed spine surgery on him at Baylor Medical Center in Plano, Texas, ABC affiliate Local 24 News reported Feb. 11. Mr. Summers, a childhood friend of Dr. Duntsch, died from an infection acquired after he was left a quadri- plegic, according to the report. During a cervical spinal fusion procedure, Dr. Duntsch penetrated an artery that paralyzed Mr. Summers from the neck down. In February 2017, Dr. Duntsch, nicknamed "Dr. Death," was convicted for aggravated assault associ- ated with care provided in the operating room. He is serving a life sentence after killing and maiming more than 30 patients while practicing in Dallas. n

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