Mayfield Brain & Spine neurosurgeons pioneer surgical technology platform at Good Samaritan Hospital

CINCINNATI – Dr. Zachary Tempel and Dr. Michael Kachmann of Mayfield Brain & Spine, the region's premier neurosurgery practice, are leading the digital transformation of spine surgery with the first-ever commercial spinal surgeries performed in the United States using the Pulse® surgical platform.

Dr. Tempel and Dr. Kachmann performed the surgeries on Monday, September 20, at TriHealth's Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati. The Pulse platform, developed by NuVasive, helps make the operating room safer and more efficient, leading to improved outcomes for patients undergoing spine surgeries. The platform integrates multiple functions in one piece of equipment at the surgeon's fingertips, including radiation reduction, imaging enhancement, rod bending, navigation, intraoperative neuromonitoring and spinal-alignment tools. Much like additional apps can be loaded onto a smartphone over time, the Pulse platform can accommodate new technologies as they are developed.

Dr. Tempel and Dr. Kachmann are Mayfield neurosurgeons who partner with NuVasive. Mayfield is working closely with TriHealth, one of Greater Cincinnati's largest health systems, to bring this and other innovative technologies to the operating room to benefit patients. TriHealth made a substantial investment in the technology platform for its operating rooms at Good Samaritan Hospital, and the system plans to bring it to patients at Bethesda North Hospital as well.

"Patients benefit when new technology provides data to the surgeon in real time and shows the relationship between different tests and monitoring," Dr. Tempel said. "The Pulse platform can revolutionize the operating room by improving outcomes and reducing time in surgery. This is the kind of innovation that makes health care safer and more efficient."

Dr. Kachmann said the Pulse platform enables a more customized approach to complex spine surgery.

"Accessing multiple platforms using different technologies that are not linked to each other is not the ideal way to operate," Dr. Kachmann said. "Pulse has created an innovative solution, offering an integrated technology that gives the surgeon a comprehensive, real-time look at a patient's condition. This helps surgeons create the best surgical solution for each individual patient."

By linking multiple spine technologies in one platform, Pulse enables the adoption of less invasive and more advanced surgical procedures. Adoption of minimally invasive surgeries can reduce time in the operating room by up to 60 minutes per patient, save up to $5,000 in hospital costs and reducing hospital stays, according to NuVasive.

About Mayfield Brain & Spine:
Mayfield Brain & Spine is the full-service patient care provider of the Mayfield Clinic, one of the nation's leading physician organizations for neurosurgical treatment, education and research. We improve the lives of our patients through innovative preventive care, surgical interventions and rehabilitation. With more than 30 specialists in neurosurgery, interventional neuroradiology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, pain management and physical therapy, Mayfield Brain & Spine treats 25,000 patients from more than 30 states in a typical year. Mayfield operates four patient care locations in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, and Mayfield physicians also care for patients at the Mayfield Spine Surgery Center in Cincinnati. Mayfield physicians specialize in the treatment of back and neck pain, sciatica, Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, NPH, epilepsy, brain and spinal tumors, stroke, moyamoya, brain aneurysms, Chiari malformation, scoliosis, kyphosis, facial pain, facial twitch, trauma, concussion, spinal cord injury and carpal tunnel. As leading innovators in their field, Mayfield physicians have pioneered surgical procedures and instrumentation that have revolutionized the medical art of neurosurgery for spinal diseases and disorders, brain tumors, and neurovascular diseases and disorders.