Laminectomy surgery is one of the commonest procedure in spine surgery. The cost of laminectomy surgery in India varies from hospital to hospital, but is it still very affordable. So no matter what the financial status of the patient, you can get the right treatment. You just need to find the right hospital.
Dr. Harnarayan Singh is a Neurosurgeon and Minimally Invasive Spine surgeon practising in Gurgaon, India. He is an expert in endoscopic spinal decompression.
Laminectomy surgery– Open vs endoscopic decompression
Laminectomy surgery is done for decompression of nerves in the spinal canal. Traditionally this surgery was done in an open fashion using a large incision. Now this surgery an be done with small incisions, and this is known as MIS lumbar decompression. Minimally invasive or endoscopic decompression has numerous advantages like less pain, less blood loss and faster recovery. In terms of cost, both the surgeries roughly cost the same. In fact, the cost would be lower for minimally invasive surgery as the hospital stay is much less than open surgery.
This page here gives an approximate cost of laminectomy surgery in India. The cost is dependent upon the many factors like type of hospital, surgeons experience, whether opting for a single room and even medical condition of a patient.
Lumbar laminectomy types
Open laminectomy
Laminectomy with fusion
Laminectomy cost in India
Open laminectomy cost
2500-3000 USD
Open laminectomy involves removal of lamina or the back part of a vertebra. This helps in improving the space available to the nerves in the spinal canal. Traditionally this surgery has been done in an open fashion. This involves using a midline incision and removing the lamina completely. This achieves very good decompression of the nerves but is associated with some pain and slightly slower recovery.
MIS Lumbar decompression
3000-3500 USD
MIS Lumbar decompression is a minimally invasive or endoscopic approach to treat spinal canal stenosis. The surgery is done through a small hole and therefore causes very less trauma to the normal structures around. The blood loss is minimal and recovery is very fast.
Laminectomy with fusion
5000-20000 USD
In some patients laminectomy alone is not sufficient. Fusion or fixing the bones together using titanium screws and rods may be necessary in certain patients, where bones have a tendency to move abnormally. In patients with severe back pain, laminectomy will not improve back pain, and stabilising the spine becomes necessary. The surgery cost depends on the type of implant and the number of spinal levels that needs to be operated upon. For example if a single level of disc needs to be fixed like L45 level, cost would be around 5-6000 USD. However, if four levels of spine need to be operated, then cost would be 8-10000 USD
India is one of the most favoured destinations for medical tourism(1). Over the years, India has developed into a medical hub for south-east Asia.
Ref- 1. Medical tourism in India
