Spine Treatment in Israel

Treatment of spinal diseases in Israel is a popular medical service. Many patients from Central Asia and Eastern Europe, including famous politicians and athletes, prefer to solve spinal problems in Israeli clinics. Treatment of the spine in Israel for most patients allows in a short time:

• eliminate chronic back pain and other symptoms associated with damage to the spinal column (for example, weakness and numbness in the limbs);
• maintain the functional state of the affected segments and avoid disability;
• undergo rehabilitation and restore ability to work and improve quality of life.

Therefore, many patients who were unable to be helped by local doctors are considering the option of spine treatment in Israel.

Vertebrology, a branch of medicine that studies spine diseases, is rapidly developing in Israel. Currently, this high-tech industry provides patients with:

• accurate diagnosis of spinal column diseases;
• effective conservative treatment methods;
• innovative procedures to eliminate back pain;
• minimally invasive surgery using gentle endoscopic treatment methods;
• robotic surgical interventions using Israeli innovative systems;
• early rehabilitation and rapid recovery after surgery;
• application of the latest scientific developments and medical advances in the field of spine treatment.

Spine treatment in Israel is carried out by doctors of several specialties: orthopedists, neurosurgeons, neurologists, rehabilitation specialists and physiotherapists. Israeli spinal surgeons, doctors who specialize in spine surgery, achieve especially outstanding treatment results. Many clinics employ world-class specialists who can provide good long-term results with all types of back treatment in Israel at any age. To this end, they individually consider each case and apply advanced and innovative treatment methods, technologies, and procedures.

Most often, Israeli clinics treat foreign patients with the following diagnoses:

• intervertebral hernia of different parts of the spine;
• spinal canal stenosis;
• compression (for osteoporosis) or traumatic fracture of the spine;
  organic and functional scoliosis and other deformities in children and adults;
• spondylosis deformans;
• spondylolisthesis with displacement and prolapse of intervertebral discs;
• operated spine syndrome;
• spina bifida in children and adults;
• benign and malignant tumors;
• Bekhterev’s disease;
• advanced osteochondrosis;
• chronic back pain of unknown etiology.

You can go to Israeli clinics with a problem in the spine of any age and at any age.

Within 1-2 days in Israeli clinics, doctors conduct a complete examination:

• identify pathological changes in the spine;
• assess age-related changes in vertebral structures;
• determine the source of back pain and the cause of neurological disorders.

The “gold standard” for diagnostics in Israeli clinics is MRI on a 1.5-3 Tesla tomograph for visualizing all structures. The innovative EOS X-ray allows you to assess the condition of the entire spinal column – a fast vertical scan of the spine with minimal radiation exposure.

If necessary, doctors prescribe several other tests:

• CT scan, which clearly shows bone structures and their pathological changes;
• discography – special radiography of the disc;
• Myelography – an x-ray examination with the introduction of a dye into the spinal canal, which visualizes the nerve roots.

Many Israeli surgeons perform selective nerve root blockade with contrast: the procedure both anesthetizes and shows what is causing the pain.

Accurate and error-free diagnosis of back pathology in Israel allows you to choose the most suitable type of treatment for each patient.

For most patients, Israeli doctors select effective conservative treatment, which may include:

• drug therapy with the latest generation drugs, including pain-relieving injections;
• physiotherapy;
• nerve root blockade, epidural steroid injection;
• massage, acupuncture, manual therapy;
• therapeutic exercises to strengthen the back muscles;
• wearing orthoses, corsets, bandages.

Doctors also have innovative treatment methods in their arsenal, for example, orthokine therapy – administration of anti-inflammatory serum prepared from the patient’s blood.

Conservative treatment methods allow the patient to improve in 2-3 weeks. But most often, foreign patients turn to Israeli clinics when:

• conservative therapy at the place of residence did not help, and doctors suggested surgery but did not give any guarantees;
• ineffective interventions on the spine were performed;
• surgical treatment of congenital or acquired pathology in a small child or adolescent is indicated;
• you need a complex operation on the spine, which the doctors at your place of residence did not undertake to perform;
• The patient has been diagnosed with a tumor.

Feedback from patients shows that in Israel, spinal surgeons approach spinal surgery very carefully. They take into account all the risks and benefits of such treatment in each specific case.

Israeli spinal surgeons use all existing techniques for decompression (removing compression of the spinal cord and nerves), correction and stabilization of the spine:

• spinal fusion – fixed fixation of the vertebrae and their dynamic stabilization, which allows you to preserve movement in the operated spinal segment, using various designs of implants, cages, screws, plates made of bone or biocompatible materials, including special systems for scoliosis;
• laminectomy, facetectomy – removal of part of the vertebra;
• foraminotomy – widening the hole through which the nerve root exits;
• discectomy – removal of part or all of the intervertebral disc;
• endoprosthetics of the intervertebral disc – installation of an artificial implant made of titanium alloys or durable silicone using laser welding or special glue;
• nucleoplasty – destruction of a disc herniation using cold plasma;
• laser disc surgery – vaporization of intervertebral hernia; disc regeneration using laser;
• prosthetic replacement of vertebrae when destroyed by a tumor;
• vertebroplasty – injection of bone cement into the body of damaged vertebrae.

Spine surgery in Israeli clinics has several significant advantages for patients:

• The standard of treatment is a safe, minimally invasive surgery using endoscopic techniques and neuronavigation systems;

• many operations are one-day surgery, but even in the case of complex surgery, back treatment in Israel requires hospitalization for one week;

• many types of operations are performed using the latest generation robotic installation Spine Assist from the manufacturer Mazor Robotics (Israel), which ensures absolute precision of manipulations;

• use innovative implants and systems for dynamic stabilization of the spine that are not available in other countries (for example, the TOPS implant);

• Israeli spinal surgeons are considered among the best specialists in the world.

The result of spinal surgery, including repeated surgery, in Israel is almost always predictable. According to leading medical centers, the success rate is about 96%. This corresponds to, and often exceeds, the success rates of such operations in leading specialized clinics in the world.

There are many hospitals in Israel where doctors treat diseases of the spinal column at world standards. Among them are Assuta, Suraski (Ichilov), Shiba, Rambam.

In 2022, the Rambam Clinic performed a unique operation for the first time in Israel: in an 80-year-old patient, spinal surgeons performed spinal fusion in the lumbar spine through a “keyhole” – a tiny incision in the abdomen at waist level. Doctors used endoscopic techniques to fix the vertebrae after two previous unsuccessful surgeries. This approach avoids open surgery and preserves the back muscles. Now such operations are already performed in some other Israeli clinics.

To find your way around Israeli clinics for spine treatment, it is advisable to contact Experts Medical using the application on the website. You will receive a lot of additional information about back treatment in Israel from the best specialists and make the right choice.

Prices for spine surgeries in Israel may differ in public and private clinics. They also depend on the status of the surgeon, the type of intervention, the implants and the technologies used. In any case, the cost of spine surgery in Israel will be half that in the US, 20% less than in Germany, but 30% more than in Turkey. The estimated cost of spine surgery in Israel starts from $18,000.

The cost of certain types of surgical treatment of the spine in Israel can be clarified with Experts Medical specialists.

Reviews from patients who have undergone spinal surgery in Israel are incredibly positive. All patients say that only in Israeli clinics, with the help of surgical treatment, they were saved from disability and “regained their legs” and their usual way of life. The unique world-class surgeon Ilya Pekarsky, who operates at the Assuta and Souraski clinics and takes on the most difficult cases, receives especially many words of gratitude.

During the treatment of spinal diseases in Israel, patients from other countries also note a comfortable stay, professionalism of the staff, and the absence of a language barrier. They recommend surgery in Israel in hopeless (from the point of view of local medicine) cases. In their opinion, the price of spine surgery in Israel corresponds to the excellent quality of life after treatment in this country.

Treatment of the spine in Israel begins with two important events – an MRI of the spine and a consultation with a spinal surgeon.

The experience and qualifications of Israeli spinal surgeons allow us to make an accurate diagnosis almost immediately and promptly begin treatment.

The cost of MRI on the latest generation tomographs starts from $1200. A consultation with a leading Israeli specialist, such as Zvi Lidar, costs $600-800.

If the patient has an MRI disk recently taken on a tomograph with a power of at least 1.5 Tesla and a conclusion that complies with international standards, then there will be no need to repeat this study.

To organize a trip to one of the Israeli clinics for spine treatment, you need to fill out an application form on the website. The Experts Medical coordinating doctor will do the rest – from providing all the necessary information and correspondence consultation to purchasing tickets for the selected date. It also provides comprehensive support throughout the entire period of treatment for spinal diseases in Israel.