Exoscope Tied to Better Outcomes in Spinal Neurosurgery

FRIDAY, Feb. 9, 2024 (HealthDay News) -- Use of an exoscope for spinal neurosurgery is associated with superior intraoperative outcomes versus use of the operative microscope, according to a study published online Dec. 5 in World Neurosurgery.

Noah L.A. Nawabi, from the College of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, and colleagues compared intraoperative outcomes for exoscope-assisted spine surgery versus similar procedures performed using the operative microscope. The analysis included 123 exoscope spinal surgeries performed on 116 unique patients and 126 surgeries on 120 unique patients using the microscope.

The researchers found that mean blood loss (28 versus 132 mL), operative time (83 versus 103 minutes), and length of stay (1.04 versus 1.73 days) were significantly lower for the exoscope group than for the microscope group.

"Spine surgeons should consider implementing the exoscope in their own practice, because it has the potential to improve the operative experience for everyone involved in the case and improve patient outcomes," the authors write. "Future studies should assess the efficacy of the exoscope in spine surgery with similar designs but larger patient and surgeon population samples."

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