What Is Coflex and How Is It Used in Spine Surgery?

What is Coflex and how is it used in spine surgery? In this video, G. Grady McBride, M.D., a board-certified orthopaedic spine surgeon at Orlando Orthopaedic Center specializing in minimally-invasive spine surgery explains what Coflex is and how it can help stabilize and strengthen the spine as part of laminectomy spine surgery.

Using a 3-D model of the spine, Dr. McBride demonstrates how the Coflex device is fitted onto the spine during surgery.

"I wanted to explain a little bit about the (Coflex) device, what it actually does, and how we use it in surgery,” says Dr. McBride.

“I have a model of the spine here, and this is a Coflex device here. If you look at the spine model from the side, you would see this kind of view. And if you look at it from the back, you see this view. And these structures are called the laminas. They look a little like shingle devices or roof shingles that go down the spine.”

“One of the common procedures we do is called laminectomy. So we would go in here and remove some of this bone and tissue in order to decompress the spinal canal. Unfortunately, when we do that, it often adds a little bit of instability to the spine. That means the spine is moving too much which can lead to instability and for problems down the road.”

“So we have this nifty little device called the Coflex device,” Dr. McBride continues. “And once we've completed the surgery where we remove the impingement on the nerves, which requires the removal of some of the bone and tissue, we simply take the Coflex device and pop it in.”

“Fortunately, it does come in different sizes so we can adjust it if you're a small person or larger person. The Coflex device clips on to the spinous process. Once we have the device in, we simply crimp the edges together. And that connects the device to the spinous process.”

“The advantage there is the Coflex device holds the lamina open or holds the spinous processes open somewhat. And it helps stabilize the spine. Therefore, the spine is not as moveable as it would be without the device. The nice about the Coflex device is that once it's in, it can stay in permanently. We don't have to remove it.”

“After inserting Coflex, we have a fairly stable spine. We are trying to restore the strength and stability of the spine following the laminectomy, and hopefully, the device will prevent further problems down the road.”

To learn more about Orlando Orthopaedic Center visit https://www.orlandoortho.com/
To learn more about Dr. McBride visit https://www.orlandoortho.com/physicians/grady-mcbride/
To learn more about spine surgery visit https://www.orlandoortho.com/subspecialties/spine/
To learn more about laminectomy visit https://www.orlandoortho.com/subspecialties/spine/laminectomy/
To learn about the benefits of minimally-invasive spine surgery visit https://www.orlandoortho.com/spine-surgery-benefits/

*footage courtesy of coflexsolution.com

Видео What Is Coflex and How Is It Used in Spine Surgery? канала OrlandoOrtho