RMC first in N.J. to offer TESSYS minimally invasive surgery for patients with herniated discs

Feb 1 2012

Riverview Medical Center, part of Meridian Neuroscience, today announced it is the only hospital in the state of New Jersey to offer patients the TESSYS® surgery method, a minimally invasive procedure for the treatment of herniated discs.

It's estimated that eight out of 10 people will suffer from back trouble at some point in their lives. Riverview Medical Center, in conjunction with Albert Telfeian M.D., a neurosurgeon affiliated with Riverview and Meridian Neuroscience, is offering patients this groundbreaking new procedure. With the TESSYS method the surgeon removes the herniated portions of the disc using posterior lateral endoscopic access. The surgeon removes the herniated disc tissue through an access tube of mere millimeters. The operation requires only a tiny skin incision about the size of a pea, so that the risk of infection during and after the operation is very small.

"I am thrilled that we have a new option that is so effective in helping my patients with lumbar herniated disks," says Dr. Telfeian. "My patients that have undergone the TESSYS procedure have noticed dramatic improvements in both pain and function. The ultra-minimally invasive nature of the procedure makes it an ideal therapeutic intervention prior to open spine surgery. In addition, complication rates for the TESSYS procedure are lower and recovery times faster than other surgical procedures for treating herniated disks."

And no one knows the life altering benefits of TESSYS more than Gertrude Brustowicz of Toms River, NJ. At 75 years old, Gertrude battled lumbar pain for more than a year, making it difficult to even get out of bed in the morning.

"I ignored all the tell-tale signs that something was wrong for months until I was pretty much immobile," says Brustowicz. "Dr. Telfeian and the staff at Riverview could not have been more accommodating before, during, and after my procedure. The fact that this technology is available right in my backyard was invaluable to me and will help countless others who suffer from this debilitating pain."