At Villa dei Fiori in Mugnano, the first procedure in Europe for sacroiliac fusion with a latest-generation device
At the Casa di Cura Villa dei Fiori in Mugnano di Napoli of the NefroCenter Group, the first procedure in Europe for sacroiliac fusion has been performed for painful sacroiliac joint dysfunction syndrome, using the brand-new I-Fuse®️ TORQ®️ device. The procedure was carried out on a 45-year-old patient by Dr. Pier Francesco Eugeni, senior neurosurgeon in the NefroCenter Group’s highly complex neurosurgery team, which holds the second-largest European case series in this type of highly complex surgery.
Sacroiliac syndrome, also known as painful sacroiliac joint dysfunction, is one of the most common causes of low back pain. Despite this, it is often not properly considered when evaluating patients who complain of back pain.
The typical pain is located in the lower back, radiating to the buttocks, groin or lower limbs, and can be so sharp that it prevents standing upright. In many cases, this condition is mistaken for sciatica or for lumbago.
The causes may include trauma, postural imbalances, differences in leg length, road accidents, spinal surgery or childbirth. In some cases, the syndrome is associated with systemic autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or ankylosing spondylitis.
When medical and physiatric therapies are not effective, arthrodesis, that is, surgical fusion, of the sacroiliac joint may become necessary, a procedure that does not cause significant functional limitations.
The TORQ®️ device, available in Europe for only a few weeks, represents a significant technological innovation in the treatment of sacroiliac syndrome. It makes it possible to perform joint fusion while further reducing surgical trauma compared with earlier techniques. It is the most recent technological evolution.
The technique involves inserting three porous titanium implants that pass through the sacroiliac joint, stabilizing it and inducing bone fusion within a few months. The patient can generally walk on the day of the procedure, with a postoperative hospital stay of only a few days.
The minimally invasive approach makes it possible to extend this surgical option to elderly patients or those in fragile general condition.
Dr. Pier Francesco Eugeni, who graduated in L’Aquila in 1984 and specialized in Neurosurgery at the Policlinico Federico II in Naples in 1989, has nearly forty years of experience gained in Italy and abroad.
He is director, within the NefroCenter Group, of the program for the management of vertebral and spinal cord trauma.
In 2017 he was the first surgeon in Europe to use the I-Fuse3D device, the version preceding the current TORQ®️.
