LHSC performs a Canadian first in robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery
Spine surgery may never be the same for people with chronic back pain and other physical ailments.
Earlier this year, London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) became the first hospital in Canada to perform robot assisted direct lateral spine surgery.
The patient was London, Ont. resident Dave Meyn, now 57 years old.
He’s currently walking without pain, but it wasn’t that way not so long ago.
“I’d have occasion where I would even fall down, couldn’t feel my leg,” explained Meyn. “It eventually came to the point where I had to come into ER and get some immediate attention,” he said.
In February 2023, his chronic back pain led to sciatica in his right leg and extreme pain in his lower back.
About a year later, in February 2024, he received the robot-assisted surgery.
He was home within a couple days.
Dr. Victor Yang, neurosurgeon at LHSC speaks with patient Dave Men on April 25, 2024. Meyn received robot-assisted direct lateral spine surgery in February 2024. (Bryan Bicknell/CTV News London)
“I basically went from not being able to walk not very far at all to having my life back,” he said.
There have only been six of these surgeries performed at LHSC so far, and Meyn’s was the first.
Not just the first at the southern Ontario hospital, but the first in Canada.
The surgery utilizes the Mazor X spinal robot. Dr. Victor Yang, neurosurgeon at LHSC performed the Canadian-first surgery.
He explained that it eliminates the need for a second surgery.
“Dave is not the first patient to receive the surgery in our hospital but he’s the first person to receive the surgery by doing it minimally invasively and going at it from two different directions without waking him up and without staging the surgery over two days, and without flipping him on the operating table. All of that reduces the time and the suffering he may have,” said Dr. Yang.
According to LHSC, chronic back pain affects nearly eight million Canadians, and it can be debilitating.
As for Meyn, he’s in recovery for a few more months, but he no longer takes simple tasks for granted.
“From putting on your socks to leaning over the sink to brush your teeth,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Air quality advisories issued in 5 provinces, 1 territory
Air quality advisories are in effect across Western Canada as smoky conditions plague some areas, according to the latest forecasts. Here's where.
'Oh my God, you're my brother': Man in his 70s discovers 6 unknown siblings
After receiving a DNA kit one Christmas from his son-in-law, Hugh McCormick soon discovered that he had six unknown siblings, with whom he shared the same birth parents.
No refund for travellers who cancelled flight already scrapped by airline: regulator
Four years on, the controversy over whether airlines owed refunds to passengers after cancelling hundreds of thousands of flights during the pandemic continues to simmer, aggravated by a sluggish, opaque complaints process.
Just how bad are ultraprocessed foods? Here are 5 things to know
Many foods fall under the category of ultraprocessed foods, depending on their exact ingredients. This type of food has been studied a lot lately, and the results aren’t great.
'My family doctor just fired me': Ontario patients frustrated with de-rostering
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
Rates of cancer declining in Canada, but more work needed to save lives: projections
A new study projecting declining rates of cancer cases and deaths in Canada demonstrates the success of prevention and early detection programs, but also highlights areas where more work is needed to save and prolong lives, researchers say.
DEVELOPING Trump trial arrives at a pivotal moment: Star witness Michael Cohen is poised to take the stand
The star prosecution witness in Donald Trump's hush money trial is set to take the stand Monday with testimony that could help shape the outcome of the first criminal case against an American president.
India's mammoth election is more than halfway done as millions begin voting in fourth round
Millions of Indians across 96 constituencies began casting their ballots on Monday as the country's gigantic, six-week-long election edges past its halfway mark. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third straight term with an eye on winning a supermajority in Parliament.
Ottawa pizzeria places among top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world at international competition
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.