Editor-in-Chief: Sam W. Wiesel, MD. Editors:  Scott D. Boden, MD;  John M. Flynn, MD; and John M. Rhee, MD
Publisher: Wolters Kluwer | Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins – 434 pages
Book Review by: Nano Khilnani

In this excellent work, 90 specialists in various aspects of spine surgery working in medical centers and universities all over the United States have authored the 47 chapters of this textbook.

We provide below an overview of what you will find in it, for you to reference and study the procedures you are interested in, including a large number of images:

  • Cervical
    • Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion With or Without Instrumentation
    • Anterior Cervical Corpectomy and Fusion With Instrumentation
    • Posterior Cervical Foraminotomy
    • Cervical Laminoplasty: Open and French Door
    • Posterior Cervical Fusion With Instrumentation
    • Occipitocervical and C-12 Fusion With Instrumentation
    • Cervical Disc Replacement
    • Cervical Osteotomies with Kyphosis
    • Reduction Techniques for Cervical Fractures and Dislocations
    • Minimally Invasive Posterior Cervical Laminoforaminotomy
  • Thoracolumbar
    • Lumbar Discectomy
    • Lumbar Decompression
    • Posterolateral Thoracolumbar Fusion With Instrumentation
    • Transforaminal and Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion
    • Iliac Crest Bone Graft Harvesting
    • Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion, Disc Replacement, and Corpectomy
    • Anterior Thoracic Corpectomy
    • Lateral Approaches to Interbody Fusion
    • Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Interbody Fusion
    • Minimally Invasive Lumbar Microdiscectomy and Laminectomy
    • Percutaneous Pedicle Screw Fixation and Fusion for Trauma
    • Costotransversectomy for Canal Decompression and Anterior Column Reconstruction via a Posterior Approach
    • Primary and Metastatic Tumors of the Spine: Total En Bloc  Spondylectomy
  • Deformity    
    • Adult Scoliosis
    • Smith-Peterson Osteotomy and Pedicle Subtraction Osteotomy
    • Vertebral Column Resection for Severe Rigid Spinal Deformity through an All Posterior Approach
    • Smith-Peterson Osteotomy for the Management of Sagittal Plane Spinal Deformity
    • Sacropelvic Fixation Techniques
  • Complications
    • Management of Intraoperative Cerebrospinal Fluid Leaks: Techniques of Dural Repair, Dural Patching, and Placement and Management of Subarachnoid Lumbar Drains
    • Revision Lumbar Surgery: Strategies and Techniques
    • Revision Cervical Surgery: Strategies and Techniques
  • Intradural Surgery
    • Surgical Excision of Intradural Spinal Tumors
  • Pediatric Spine 
    • Release of the Sternocleidomastoid Muscle
    • Segmental Hook and Pedicle Screw Instrumentation for Scoliosis
    • Kyphectomy in Spina Bifida
    • Anterior Interbody Arthrodesis With Instrumentation for Scoliosis
    • Thorascopic Release and Fusion for Scoliosis
    • Unit Rod Instrumentation for Neuromuscular Scoliosis
    • Growing Rod Instrumentation for Early-Onset Scoliosis
    • Hemivertebra Excision
    • Decompression, Posterolateral, and Interbody Fusion for High-Grade Spondylolisthesis
    • S-Rod Fixation to the Pelvis
  • Approaches
    • Anterior Cervical Approaches
    • Posterior Cervical Approach
    • Anterior Thoracic Approach
    • Anterior Lumbar Approach
    • Posterior Thoracic and Lumbar Approach

Each chapter in this book provides ample graphics in the form of black-and-white and color drawings, fluoroscopic images, photos, radiographs, sketches, and x-rays. You will also find charts and tables to help you understand the materials better, and in less time than reading large blocks of text.

The materials presented in the chapters are organized in systematic form to enable you, the student or practitioner, to quickly locate what you are looking for. For example, you will find the following headings and subheadings in chapter 16, Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion, Disc Replacement, and Corpectomy: 

  • Definition
  • Anatomy
  • Pathogenesis
  • Natural History
  • Patient History and Physical Findings
  • Imaging and Other Diagnostic Studies
  • Differential Diagnosis
  • Nonoperative Management
  • Surgical Management

In each chapter, you will find a section with a number of pages with edges in red color entitled Techniques. In chapter 16 for example, you will find the following surgical procedures covered with bullet points and an ample number of images:

  • Anterior Lumbar Radical Discectomy
  • Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion
  • Lumbar Total Disc Replacement
  • Anterior Lumbar Corpectomy

You will also benefit from the Pearls and Pitfalls section, and towards the end of the chapter, you will find bullet points under: Postoperative  Care and Complications. You will also find an ample list of References for further consultation and study.

This is an authoritative text on surgery of the spine and its various parts.

You can access online the complete contents of this printed text. To do that:

  1. Visit http://solution.lww.com
  2. Enter the access code on the inside front cover of your text
  3. Follow the instructions to activate your access

The above website is for individual use only. To get multi-user access, call 1-800-468-1128 inside the United States, or 1-410-528-4000 outside the U.S. For technical assistance, email: [email protected].

Editor-in-Chief:

Sam W. Wiesel, MD is Professor and Chair of Orthopedic Surgery at Georgetown University in Washington, DC.

Editors:

Scott D. Boden, MD is Professor of Orthopedic Surgery, Director of the Emory Orthopedic & Spine Center at The Emory Clinic, and Staff  Physician at Atlanta VA Medical Center in Atlanta, Georgia.

John M. Flynn, MD is Associate Chief of Orthopedic Surgery at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

John M. Rhee, MD is Associate Professor of Orthopedic Surgery at Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia.