Breakthrough Spine Procedure at San Ramon Regional Medical Center is a Game Changer

While you may know that the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that low back pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide, what is less known is that back injuries aren’t always due to aging: even 50% of young people experience back pain during adolescence.

What can be devastating is that undetected stress fractures in the spine can, potentially, lead to a lifetime of back pain. Some of these adolescents – typically young athletes may have these undetected stress fractures (pars fractures), which can progress into an actual break, called spondylolysis. If it progresses, the spinal disc can slip forward, which is what you may have heard called a “slipped disc.”

In fact, a slipped disc can cause severe back pain and nerve related symptoms later in life and is a common cause for spinal fusion surgery in the Unites States.

However, there is good news: in recent surgery using an innovative, minimally invasive technique at San Ramon Regional Medical Center, Dr. Saqib Hasan, successfully performed Endoscopic Pars Fracture Repair to address pars fractures in young athletes. This technique, which Dr. Hasan believes could be the first in California, fixes the fracture in the vertebra while stopping further slippage.

In this complex procedure, Dr. Hasan was able to perform a back fracture repair, bone grafting and screw placement using endoscopic and computer-based navigation technologies.

“It is a big step forward from more traditional, open spine surgery that typically involves significant cutting and dissecting of the back muscles,” said Dr. Hasan. “I can safely and accurately accomplish complex surgical tasks with incisions that are only the size of a number two pencil.”

Unlike traditional surgeries, this minimally invasive approach uses an endoscope—a small

camera and surgical instrument system that requires only tiny incisions. The result is faster

recovery, less pain and a quicker return to activity, including sports. This comprehensive procedure is already helping young athletes pursue their dreams by lowering the long-term risk of spinal fusion

surgery. Among the first fellowship-trained endoscopic spine surgeons in the United States, Dr. Hasan is at the forefront of next-gen minimally invasive spinal care.

This advancement is some of the latest in technology at San Ramon Regional, which was the first hospital in the U.S. to acquire the da Vinci robotic surgical system and where the world’s first voice-activated robotic surgery was performed.

“The best thing about being part of San Ramon Regional Medical Center, is that we have access to some of the latest and greatest cutting-edge technologies in the Unites States,” said Dr. Hasan. “By leveraging these new technologies, surgeons can be innovative in the way we treat our patients and elevate the standard of care.”