Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1456545
11 SPINE SURGEONS SPIRA-P POSTERIOR LUMBAR SPACER CA M B E R M E D T E C H . C O M SPIRA-T OBLIQUE POSTERIOR LUMBAR SPACER ORTHROS POSTERIOR STABILIZATION SYSTEM The Complete Solution for the Posterior Approach Camber Spine L I F E U P R I G H T R OPTIMIZED MIS INSTRUMENTATION FULL COMPLIMENT OF BIOLOGIC OPTIONS The Original Single Position Surgery The Original Single Position Surgery Spine patient visits expected to increase 7% in 2021: 5 details for surgeons to know By Alan Condon J oint pain medical encounters are pro- jected to increase 22 percent in 2022, with spine-related visits expected to rise 7 percent, according to a Jan. 5 report by predictive analytics company Prealize Health. Five notes: 1. Exercise keeps musculoskeletal systems healthy, but the stress and isolation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic led to people exercising less and an increase in sedentary lifestyle, with average daily sitting time for Americans increasing by about 28 percent, a Frontiers in Psychology study found. 2. Many patients who required spine and joint-related procedures delayed surgery during the pandemic. More than one-third of elective spine surgeries canceled during the first wave of the pandemic remained un- scheduled as of July 2021, according to Else- vier Public Health Emergency Collection. 3. e results of these procedure delays, in- cluding the inability to function in daily life, are expected to show up in 2022 care utiliza- tion, according to the Prealize report. 4. "e lack of exercise is a key driver of yet-undiagnosed musculoskeletal issues, even among people who are fitness fanat- ics or have no underlying contributors," Lee Sacks, MD, retired CMO of Downers Grove, Ill.-based Advocate Aurora Health, said in the Prealize report. "e ramifications of the pandemic-influenced sedentary lifestyle and long-haul COVID effects will start to arise en masse in the coming year." 5. e Prealize report anticipates pandem- ic-related restrictions on surgical procedures — especially higher-acuity spine and ortho- pedic cases — will begin driving patients who can't be maintained by telehealth alone back to costlier utilization this year. Editor's note: Prealize Health's 2022 predic- tions are based on its analysis of claims data from more than 2 million members between September 2017 and August 2021. e anal- ysis accounted for patients of all ages across all business lines such as commercial, Medi- care Advantage and Medicaid managed care. Prealize used machine learning and artificial intelligence trained on four years of medical claims, prescription claims and lab data to predict future healthcare costs and patient utilization.n