Future Technologies of Laser Spine Surgery

Laser technology is one of the powerful tools that enable surgical procedures through tiny incision in the era of minimally invasive surgery. The current use of laser technology in spine surgery can be divided into two categories—percutaneous endoscopic laser surgery and open microsurgery with laser. Many minimally invasive surgeries applied to medicine rely upon research and development of robot engineering, computer, and software science. Along with advance of surgical instruments, laser technologies also have been enormously developed and applied to various medical procedures since its first use. It is anticipated that grafting laser technology onto the robotic system will replace many conventional procedures in spine surgery. And laser technology itself will be advanced to take over its preexisting limitations. In this chapter, we will describe the technological future of laser in spine surgery—automated laser system and double shot irradiation system.