Like Mother, Like Daughter

By Deborah Danner
Delnor-Community Hospital
Geneva, IL

When Janice found out she had herniated discs in her back, all she could think about was her daughter, Jessica. "Jessica is a dancer," says Janice. "Three years ago she herniated the same two discs. She had surgery and everything went extremely well. As a matter of fact, she only missed one dance show. But she was 17; I'm…well, not that young!"

Janice's main concern was the postoperative pain she had witnessed in her daughter. Already stricken with rheumatoid arthritis and medication induced osteoporosis, she had been enduring pain and broken bones for the past 23 years. Her answer came in the form of Dr. Craig Popp.

Dr. Popp offered Janice a new option in microscopic discectomy called the METRx™ System. Only three years earlier, Dr. Popp had performed the discectomy on Jessica, but using the traditional system of retracting the musculature to gain access to the spinal column. "This system has been in use for years," notes Dr. Popp. "And, although it functions very well, it can cause some postoperative pain and muscle spasms. Since then, medical technology has advanced enough so that physicians can visualize the spinal column with greatly reduced trauma to the surrounding muscle and tissue."

To understand how the system works, remember back to your childhood when you played with the ring-stacking toy. There's a post and you stack the rings onto it starting with the largest and ending with the smallest. The METRx™ System uses this principle except in reverse. A guide wire is placed to locate the correct spot. Then a vertical incision (cut) is made. Here is where the METRx™ System greatly differs from the former procedure. Instead of using retractors to pull the muscle band apart to create the opening, graduated dilators (shaped like hollow tubes) are inserted one by one to slowly expand the muscle, beginning with the smallest and ending with the largest. Once the area is opened adequately, only the largest dilators remain; the rest are slowly removed, creating an operative corridor. The physician performs the discectomy through this corridor.

"The trauma imposed on the musculature and tissue by traditional retractors is the source of pain for the majority of discectomy patients," says Dr. Popp. "The METRx™ System expands the muscles gradually and proportionally so there is much less damage. And, because the dilating tube maintains the space without muscle and tissue edging in, the surgeon gets a much clearer view of the spinal column with excellent microscopic pictures." The benefits to the patient are also significant. "The biggest difference can be seen in the weeks following the surgery," adds Dr. Popp. "There is less need for the pain medication and muscle relaxers, and recovery time is proving to be decreased."

Being able to return to the business of living meant everything to Janice. "I was very apprehensive about the surgery," remembers Janice. "I was already trying to come back from a broken hip when they realized it was throwing a curve to my spine. But the surgery with Dr. Popp was the easiest thing I've ever experienced. The dilation system worked so well that after only a week, I was pretty much pain free."

Janice underwent physical therapy including aquatic therapy at the Delnor-Community Health and Wellness Center. "This was such a wonderful experience for me," says Janice. "I put myself in the hands of Dr. Popp and the professionals at Delnor, and they didn't let me down. My daughter got married this summer and by gosh, I was there, standing! I can do anything I want for the first time in my life!"

Learn how the METRx™ System is different than other traditional surgeries or click here to find a doctor who uses this technology.

Story contributed by Deborah Danner, Senior Marketing/Public Relations Specialist at Delnor-Community Hospital in Geneva Illinois.

It is important that you discuss the potential risks, complications, and benefits of the METRx® System with your doctor prior to receiving treatment, and that you rely on your physician's judgment. Only your doctor can determine whether you are a suitable candidate for this treatment.