What does minimally-invasive spine surgery really entail? 

Minimally invasive spine surgery is used loosely and means different things to different people. The major difference in minimally invasive spine surgery is that it does not interrupt the nerve or blood supply to normal tissue. Rather, it confines treatment to the pain source or pathology and is performed with small incisions with minimal blood loss so patients quickly recover. In addition, minimally invasive spine surgery needs to be safe, utilizing small, effective tools to enter the spine with anatomic visualization. True minimally-invasive spine surgery requires extensive surgical expertise, experience, training, and is accompanied by a steep learning curve. It requires constant diligence, training and updating of skills. It is the entire approach of accurate diagnosis, specific treatment options, precision surgery, and spine directed rehabilitation that make minimally invasive spine surgery work. Without all elements working complementary, it is not minimally invasive surgery.
“Beware of someone who has taken a weekend course on this,” says John Peloza, M.D. “Minimally invasive spine surgery requires years of extensive training and vigilant refining of techniques to perform this safely without complications. This is for dedicated spine specialists who train their entire careers to get to this point.”

Is evidence-based medicine or clinical research important?

Evidence-based medicine is a systematic approach using the scientific method to determine which treatments work best for specific conditions. There is a specific methodology to not only prove the treatment works or does not work, but also to grade the quality of the studies. Evidence-based medicine is essential to clinical decision making. One needs to understand the scientific method, statistical analysis, and significant clinical experience in order to make evidence-based medicine accurate and useful. In our practice, we have been involved in evidence-based medicine for years as part of FDA trials as well as research groups. We also contribute to large outcome databases and have tracked our own outcome data for all of our surgical procedures. Because we know our outcome data, we can help patients make informed decisions and understand the value (outcome and costs) of their care. Because of the valuable clinical data that we have collected for years regarding our minimally invasive technologies, we are able to offer patients options and predictably successful outcomes.

"Minimally invasive spine surgery requires years of extensive training and vigilant refining of techniques to perform this safely without complications. This is for dedicated spine specialists who train their entire careers to get to this point."

Honored as one of D Magazine’s Best Doctors in Dallas for the ninth year in a row, John Peloza, M.D., has continually garnered national recognition from peers and patients alike. Dr. Peloza has been selected to Best Doctors in America (only four percent of the nation’s doctors), the Consumer’s Research Council of America’s Top Surgeon in America, Super Doctors®, and most recently one of the 50 Best Spine Specialists in America. The Center for Spine Care (CSC) has been on the true forefront of spine medicine since 1996 by being pioneers of true minimally invasive surgical technologies and by utilizing comparative effectiveness research. CSC collects clinical research data on all of its treatments and procedures, and therefore is able to diagnose and offer patients options based on this research.