Current spine surgery in North America: progress or violation?

We physicians are the drivers, the people who select the patients, the people who do the operations, and the people who encourage the instrument companies; it is our responsibility to oversee both the effectiveness of treatment and its cost. The resources available to neurosurgery for improving care, controlling cost, and promoting research include the following. 1. The outstanding spinal neurosurgeons actively participating in excellent clinical care and research, neurosurgeons in training, and neurosurgeons committed to excellence. 2. A commitment by neurosurgery to improve the plight of the patients with spinal disorders. 3. Support from instrument and drug companies and national funding. 4. A medical wave of support for outcome studies and clinical trials. 5. A proven track record in doing clinical trials and a clear indication that others are in process. 6. The knowledge, abilities, and energies of neurosurgeons. Our liabilities include the following. 1. Irresponsible behavior by a few professionals. 2. The negative effects of competition with non-neurosurgical spinal surgeons. We must obtain their support in many of these clinical trials. 3. Inertia. It is much easier to take the path of least resistance, much easier to choose the course of economic incentive. Perhaps, out of all of this, spinal neurosurgery will lead the way to developing a better understanding of the natural history of degenerative diseases of the spine and the way to selecting patients properly on the basis of studies of the efficacy of appropriate surgery.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)