The patient A 27-year-old female presented with five months of progressive quadriparesis and paresthesias affecting both upper and lower extremities. She initially presented to her primary care provider five months prior, while eight months pregnant, with weakness, numbness and tingling in her right upper extremity. The symptoms initially were thought to be a result of…
The goal of Norton Leatherman Spine Back and Neck Pain Clinics is to see patients referred by primary care physicians, emergency departments or other clinicians in an expedited fashion. We strive to offer appointments within 72 hours of referral and often can see patients the next day. Even patients whose symptoms do not appear urgent…
Norton Leatherman Spine is named for Kenton D. Leatherman, M.D., a pioneering surgeon whose groundbreaking work treating scoliosis brought him worldwide renown. We’re still known as a place where patients can receive innovative surgery from outstanding surgeons. But Norton Leatherman Spine is a lot more than surgeons and surgery. We offer coordinated, multidisciplinary care for…
Spine surgeon Kathryn J. McCarthy, M.D., is a new addition to the Norton Leatherman Spine team. According to Dr. McCarthy, her aim is to bring a balance of current effective treatments and compassion to the bedside. Women in spinal care “There is a significant gender imbalance in spine care providers,” Dr. McCarthy said. “There are…
Using 3D, computer-generated spine navigation systems to position implants has transformed spinal surgery. Not only can we place the spinal implants with greater precision, navigation has allowed us to perform more surgeries using a minimally invasive approach. Minimally invasive surgery means smaller incisions, less muscle dissection, shorter hospital stays, less narcotics use, and a quicker…
In the years after World War II, Kenton D. Leatherman, M.D., pioneered new approaches to treating scoliosis. More than half a century later, we are doing our best to carry forward that legacy of innovative scoliosis care. We are always working to make our surgeries more effective, less invasive and safer for our patients with…
Norton Leatherman Spine and Norton Children’s Orthopedics of Louisville, affiliated with the UofL School of Medicine, offer a scoliosis exercise program based on the methods first used by German scoliosis patient Katharina Schroth. The method’s namesake had moderate scoliosis herself, and after years of wearing uncomfortable steel braces, she began using breathing techniques, pulley systems…
As surgical technology advances, spine surgery will become more automated, more precise and much more standardized, providing valuable data for benchmarking and informing standard of care guidelines. Ask five surgeons to do an L4-L5 fusion now, and you will get five different approaches. Robotic-assisted surgery has the power to change that. Robotic platforms can do…
Spine and orthopedic specialists at Norton Healthcare and Norton Children’s are using low-radiation EOS Imaging to evaluate and monitor spine conditions such as scoliosis and conditions affecting the hips and lower limbs. The EOS system delivers 50% to 85% less dose than digital radiography and 95% less dose than computed tomography (CT). Follow-up spine exams…
Norton Healthcare has received certification as an Orthopaedic Center of Excellence, one of only 12 hospital systems in the country to receive the designation. Norton Healthcare’s Norton Orthopedic Institute and Norton Leatherman Spine received the designation from DNV Healthcare, a leading worldwide certification body committed to the development and continual improvement of health care quality…
The Congress of Neurological Surgeons Systematic Review and Evidence-Based Guidelines for Perioperative Spine: Preoperative Osteoporosis Assessment recently was published in Neurosurgery. To develop these recommendations, the authors performed systematic review of the literature using national databases for studies relevant to preoperative diagnostic studies that predict increased risk of osteoporosis-related postoperative complications and whether the preoperative…
New evidence-based guidelines covering five key perioperative spine assessments were issued recently by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons. The guidelines, published in the medical journal Neurosurgery, provide insight on the following: Preoperative osteoporosis assessment Preoperative nutritional assessment Preoperative pulmonary evaluation and optimization Preoperative opioid evaluation Preoperative surgical risk assessment A team of eight physicians from…