Professor Jinseong Kim of Seoul St. Mary's Hospital Conducts World's First Remote Interactive Intercontinental Spine Endoscopy Training

Professor Jinseong Kim, Department of Neurosurgery, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital.
[Photo by Seoul St. Mary's Hospital]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The Catholic University of Korea Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital announced on the 28th that Professor Kim Jin-sung of the Department of Neurosurgery recently conducted the world’s first intercontinental non-face-to-face interactive spinal endoscopy training for neurosurgeons and orthopedic specialists in Switzerland.

This training was conducted over seven hours together with Dr. Heo Dong-hwa of Bumin Hospital, an authority on interactive spinal endoscopy, and Dr. Michael Piccirillo, the international education chair of the North American Spine Society. Unlike the traditional one-way training method, this advanced attempt was highly regarded as it remotely guided local specialists’ surgeries from a simulated operating room set up on-site, educating them on our spinal endoscopic surgical techniques.

Professor Kim conducted immersive training on the entire process of bi-directional spinal endoscopic surgery using video transmission equipment, navigation systems, and spinal simulators installed in the simulated operating room in Switzerland.

Spinal endoscopic surgery is a technique used to treat degenerative spinal diseases such as stenosis or herniated discs while minimizing tissue damage. It allows for faster recovery and minimizes complications, making it relatively safe even for elderly patients.

The bi-directional endoscopic spinal surgery, which has recently gained significant attention, was first reported at the World Congress of Neurosurgery held in Seoul in 2013. Since then, rapid technical advancements and academic foundations have been established mainly in Korea, leading to its swift adoption in several countries.

Decompression and discectomy surgeries using bi-directional endoscopy follow a surgical process similar to conventional microscopic surgery but are performed similarly to arthroscopy or laparoscopy. This allows the advantages of endoscopic surgery without the need for expensive microscopic equipment. The surgery is performed through small incisions just large enough for the endoscope, which benefits patients by reducing recovery and hospitalization times and decreases the social costs associated with spinal surgery.

Professor Kim stated, "Bi-directional spinal surgery is a surgical method that has recently been rapidly established as an international standard treatment and is attracting much interest and attention from foreign doctors." He added, "Even during the recent pandemic, many overseas spinal specialists required training, and the surgical techniques have been transferred through non-face-to-face online education."

He continued, "Based on this, I hope that endoscopic spinal surgery will be stably established both domestically and internationally," emphasizing, "In the future, we will continue advanced surgical broadcasting education with a sense of presence by integrating virtual reality (VR) technology to enhance immersion."

Professor Kim is an expert in minimally invasive spinal surgery, especially spinal endoscopic surgery, and actively lectures worldwide while nurturing future talents. Notably, during 2020-2021 after the pandemic, he was invited as the first speaker in over 120 overseas invited lectures. Professor Kim holds the most papers and clinical experience not only in spinal endoscopic surgery but also in minimally invasive spinal fusion surgery and spinal surgery using navigation devices. He has served as a specialist member of ISO, the international standardization organization for spinal surgery and related technologies, and as a member of the Medical Device R&BD Committee of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy. He is conducting spinal endoscopy projects in national projects related to medical device development and patient optimization projects of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Additionally, he is serving as the director of the Medical Device Development Center at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital to strengthen advanced medical device development and infrastructure.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.