Bon Secours St. Francis Health System

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Intricate, specialized surgeries involving the brain, central nervous system or skeletal system used to be performed at only a few hospitals, which meant patients and their families often had to travel. St. Francis recognized that giving our community close access to such procedures was important to our mission of caring. Today, the hospital's neurosurgical services rival any in the region. Arthroscopy, neck and back surgery, intracranial surgery, and spinal fusion are among the neurosurgical procedures performed at St. Francis.

 

 

As a tool for surgeons who perform complex surgeries of the brain, back, neck and sinuses, St. Francis offers computer-guided imagery called Stealth System Technology. With the Stealth System, surgeons get a three-dimensional view inside a patient's head or sinus cavity and can pinpoint the exact location of surgical instruments. This technology enables the surgeon to navigate previously off-limits areas of the anatomy. With brain tumors, for instance, the surgeon may be able to remove more of the tumor without damaging surrounding healthy tissue.

 

 

 

 

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St. Francis offers a range of diagnostic services, specialty programs, advanced surgical procedures, interventional procedures and treatment options. For more information on orthopedic health in general and services offered at St. Francis, visit Orthopedic & Spine Care.

 

St. Francis is one of the first Upstate health systems to support a new minimally invasive type of surgery on the spine. With this new procedure, called percutaneous spinal fusion, surgeons can remove and replace an entire spinal disk through four very small incisions. This procedure allows patients to avoid some of the pain and potential complications involved in more traditional surgery, which exposes and invades large areas of muscle. Most patients are up and walking the next day with little back pain, and most can go home from the hospital after two or three days. Percutaneous spinal fusion is a viable option for most patients with complicated spine problems, such as degenerative disk disorders and slippage in the spine.

 

When back pain includes loss of function and numbness that doesn't respond to medication and bed rest, surgery may be the answer. Helping back-surgery patients return home quickly and comfortably is a priority at St. Francis. Our facilities accommodate major orthopedic and neurosurgical operations, some of which can be performed even on an outpatient basis. The ability to support outpatient back surgery is somewhat unique to St. Francis; few area hospitals have a system in place that makes outpatient back surgery possible. When outpatient surgery is not feasible, many inpatient procedures require only a short hospital stay.

 

 

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Cardiac surgeons perform a wide range of procedures at St. Francis, such as valve replacement and coronary bypass and beating-heart surgery. St. Francis' catheterization labs also support less invasive procedures, such as angioplasty, ablation, atherectomy, and placement of coronary stents, internal defibrillators, and internal and external pacemakers.

 

Beating-heart surgery provides an option for some patients, such as the very elderly, who may not be candidates for traditional open-heart surgery. Traditional open-heart surgery involves stilling the heart and re-routing the blood through a heart-lung machine. Since the heart-lung machine assumes the entire circulation function for the body and lungs, post-surgical complications sometimes can occur, especially in older or medically fragile patients. During beating-heart surgery the blood continues to circulate within the body and the heart beats throughout the procedure; a special device steadies a portion of the beating heart, allowing the surgeon to place the needed bypass or grafts.

 

In addition to problems within coronary arteries, there also can be problems associated with heart valves. The heart valves may not let enough blood flow through, or they may not close properly thus allowing blood to leak where it should not. Small birth defects left unrepaired, diseases that cause scarring in the heart, or aging can cause valves to weaken or harden, requiring treatment. A three- to four-hour surgery that either repairs or replaces valves is often the treatment for heart valve problems.

 

Coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) is an operation in which arteries or veins are taken from another part of the body (i.e. chest or legs) and attached above and below the blockage in the artery. The purpose of CABG is to circulate more oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle, thereby eliminating chest pain that comes from lack of oxygen to the heart.

 

 

 

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Eye surgery is increasingly popular, both for medical and cosmetic reasons. St. Francis supports almost every modern eye surgical technique in use today, including retina laser surgery. Most eye surgeries, including procedures for cataracts and macular degeneration, are offered on an outpatient basis.

 

Cloudy vision is a common effect of aging. A condition, called a cataract, occurs when the lens of the eye becomes opaque and prevents clear focus. Symptoms include trouble seeing in bright light, double vision in one eye, fading color and poor night vision. Cataract surgery to implant an artificial lens is the most-performed surgery in the United States. At St. Francis, our special 'fast-track' outpatient cataract surgery enables cataract patients to get in and out of surgery in just a few hours. With the fast-track procedure, surgeons make small incisions and use no stitches. Use of a local anesthetic further reduces recovery time. The surgery produces very little pain, and in most cases, patients can shed their glasses except for reading.

 

St. Francis provides outpatient laser-surgery services for treating macular degeneration. This progressive eye disorder stems from damage to the macula, which lies at the back of the retina. Typically, the central vision is impaired but peripheral, or side, vision is unaffected. Macular degeneration is not reversible, but it may be possible to prevent further deterioration by closing leaking vessels. Early diagnosis and treatment is key; people older than 50 who experience sudden vision changes should seek treatment immediately.

 

 

 

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Chronic sinus sufferers who don't respond to medication or other treatments may be candidates for sinus surgery. St. Francis supports traditional sinus surgical techniques, and also offers Stealth System Technology for use during sinus surgery.

 

 

As a tool for surgeons who perform complex surgeries of the sinuses, St. Francis offers
computer-guided imagery called Stealth System Technology. With the Stealth System, surgeons get a three-dimensional view inside a patient's sinus cavity and can pinpoint the exact location of surgical instruments. This technology enables the surgeon to navigate previously off-limits areas of the anatomy.

 

 

 

 

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As an alternative to surgery for kidney stones, St. Francis offers lithotripsy. This outpatient procedure uses soundwaves to break kidney stones into tiny pieces so they can exit the body along with urine. The treatment lasts about an hour, and most patients can return to work the following day. Kidney stones can be removed with cystoscopy, a minimally invasive, telescopic procedure for viewing the bladder, urethra and pelvis of the kidneys.

 

 

 

 

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Stress incontinence is involuntary urine leakage associated with sneezing, coughing or other activities. St. Francis supports several treatments aimed at minimizing this frustrating problem, which affects mostly women. One effective surgical procedure involves the placement of tape-like bands, or slings, to support the bladder. Your physician can advise you if this procedure is appropriate for you.