Current Status and Future of Endoscopic Spinal Surgery in Latin America and Spain
Article information
On behalf of Brazilian Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Society (BRAMISS), Latin America Endoscopic Spine Surgery Society (LESSS), and Spanish Society for Percutaneous Spine Endoscopy (SECPEC) we would like to thank for inviting us to the Journal of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery and Technique (JMISST) special issue.
It is my great honor and privilege to serve together with Dr. David Del Curto as Lead Editors representing Brazil for the JMISST. Side by side with my admired colead editors, Dr. Facundo Van Isseldyk from Argentina and Dr. Ricardo Casal Grau from Spain, we would like to present to you this special issue focused on Endoscopic Spine Surgery in Brazil, Latin America and Spain.
Our regions always had a special bond with Asia, and specifically with Korea that is reflected in my personal history: I was born in Seoul, and we immigrated to Brazil in 1966. In the early nineties, I acquired a knee arthroscope and based on the pioneering work of Parviz Kambin I began to study the feasibility of safely performing spine endoscopy on fresh cadaver specimens. In the early 2000s, due to the need to incorporate and disseminate the evolution of minimally invasive spine techniques, we founded the Brazilian Association for the Development of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (ABCMIC/BRAMISS) and in 2004 we organized the first International Symposium on Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (SIMINCO).
In 2006, I returned to Seoul to participate in the KOMISS (Korean Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Research Society) event with the invitation of Dr. Yong Eun Cho and Dr. Sang Ho Lee. Since then, we have maintained a strong bond of friendship and scientific exchange with our Korean colleagues. This Korean influence, together with other bonds with formative centers in Germany, made Latin American endoscopic spine surgery flourish in less than 10 years: In 2012, due to the efforts of the early pioneers of Brazil and Colombia, all the full set of endoscopic spine procedures was routinely utilized in the region. The settlement of local training centers in Colombia and Brazil completed the circle, facilitating the access to endoscopic education and formation.
Almost a decade after, as a way to continue the process of knowledge-sharing and scientific discussions among colleagues during the 2019 pandemic lockdown, endoscopic surgeons from Latin America organized a series of webinars that later converged in the 2021 foundation of LESSS.
Spain has followed a similar course: early pioneers adopted the technique at the beginning of the century, especially in Barcelona. But it was not until the early 2010s that endoscopic spine surgery was performed on a daily basis. In 2015, endoscopic spine surgery in Spain was at a world-class level, with all the set of procedures being successfully performed. The founding of the SECPEC in 2021 was a way to reunite and centralize the efforts in the diffusion and promotion of the technique, and to continue the surgical education for the future generations.
In this special issue, remarkable manuscripts reflecting the local experience in several endoscopic and minimally invasive techniques is portraited, such as full-endoscopy, unilateral biportal endoscopy, extreme lateral interbody fusion, and cervical total disc replacement.
Even when there is no common database nor patient registries for Brazil, Latin America and Spain, this issue carries the efforts of numerous surgical groups working across these regions. Is for us a great honor and privilege to participate in this special issue, hoping that you find it useful and interesting.
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Conflict of Interest
PSC, DDC, RCC, and FVI, are member of the Editorial Board of Journal of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery & Technique, are the author of this article. However, they played no role whatsoever in the editorial evaluation of this article or the decision to publish it. All Authors have no conflict of interest to declare.