patient resources
What is the FlareHawk Interbody Fusion System?
The FlareHawk Interbody Fusion System was designed to allow surgeons to perform procedures in as minimally invasive a manner as possible. This is because the FlareHawk system provides for implantation with a small incision due to its minimal insertion profile. Once in the desired location in the spine, the surgeon is then able to expand the implant into a wider and supportive footprint for the patient’s anatomy.
The FlareHawk Interbody Fusion System is most commonly used as part of a transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) procedure. Read on to learn more about the surgery and to download our full patient brochure.
Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion Overview
A transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion is a type of spinal fusion that aims to restore disc height, realign the spine, alleviate nerve impingement, and ultimately allow the bones to permanently fuse. After you are asleep with the use of anesthesia you will be placed face down, so that the surgeon can access your spine from your back.
The procedure involves removing the intervertebral disc material from the disc space. Once cleared, an implant, sometimes referred to as an interbody device, spacer, or cage, is inserted in the disc space. The surgeon will then stabilize your spine by securing the indicated vertebral levels together with screws and rods.
Similar to the healing process of broken bones of the arm or legs, the goal of surgery is to stabilize the spine to allow fusion (the bones growing together) to occur over the next few weeks to months of the postoperative period.
