The past decade has seen major advances in image-guided spine surgery techniques, with robotically
assisted approaches emerging in the last five years. While early adopters of this technology paved the
way for more widespread use of navigated and robotic systems, barriers still exist. Navigation and Robotics
in Spine Surgery by master spine surgeon Alexander Vaccaro and esteemed co-editors Jaykar Panchmatia,
I. David Kaye, and Srinivas Prasad addresses existing issues such as the perception of increased upfront
costs, intrusion on current workflow, and a lack of understanding about the potential ways these
technologies can enhance the surgical experience and improve patient outcomes.
Organized into six sections, the book starts with evidence-based fundamentals of navigated spine surgery
and robotics including discussion of instrumentation and mechanics. Sections 2-5 serve as a surgical
handbook for spine surgeons who wish to introduce these technologies into practice or augment their
current repertoire with more complex techniques. Topics range from more routine procedures such as
navigated and robotic minimally invasive TLIF to complex approaches like intraoperative ultrasound
guided intradural spinal tumor resection. The final section looks at future directions and potential new
applications for these technologies.