Medic gains valuable insight into pioneering spine treatment

By Kate Heaney

A YOUNG woman from St Johnston has just returned to her medical studies in Aberdeen having seen first hand the world’s most advanced nano endoscopic (ultra small) spine procedures in the world.

Kellie McClafferty (23) will graduate next month as a medical doctor from the University of Aberdeen.

She is the daughter of BBC Northern Ireland Political Editor Enda McClafferty and his artist/sculptor/equestrian wife, Marina Hamilton.

Kellie spent the month of April in the Beverly Hills Back Institute where founder Dr David Ditsworth spent a large part of his medical career developing an alternative to highly intrusive surgery to correct problems like sciatica.

Such has been his success, patients from across the globe, who can afford it, travel to LA to avail of this pioneering technique.

Speaking to the Donegal News this week from Aberdeen, Kellie explained how as part of her course, the medical students learn a little about all aspects of medicine.

Then, towards their finals, they are given a few weeks to pick what aspects in particular interests them.

“Normally you could go anywhere in the world but since Covid-19 things are only opening up again. I chose this placement in LA as I have always been interested in Neurology and the USA is known for their medical innovation and huge investment in medical developments. Even as a student at the Royal and Prior School when asked to write on a piece of paper what we wanted to be. I wrote Neurosurgeon.

“What Dr Ditsworth has developed for spinal surgery is mind blowing – the method and equipment. Sciatica is the main thing he treats which can leave people totally bedridden and unable to work.”

Kellie explained that there are two parts to the spine, the bony part which is weight bearing and protects the spinal cord where the nervous system is.

Sometimes the discs can protrude into the area where the spinal cord is.

This causes irritation on the nerves and goes down the legs and feet.

What a surgeon needs to do is to get into the spinal canal to get access to the spinal cord.

In the UK and Ireland the normal way to do this is to get the patient lying on their stomach under a general aesthetic.

The surgeon then cuts through the skin on their back and then has to cut through the bone to access it.

This can bring a lot of complications and healing takes a long time as it is massively invasive. Normally the waiting lists for this treatment in these islands is very long and it can alter the natural structure of the spine.

“Dr Ditsworth’s technique makes a very small medical opening and he has developed devices which require just a 4 mm cut that can go in through that gap and grab whatever is touching the nerve and pull it out. There is no cutting, bleeding stitching or bone cutting.

“While there I saw a patient come in on a stretcher who was totally disabled by sciatica and had to stop working. He had surgery the next day, the following day he was able to walk into the surgery for his post op and he returned to work five days later. It was amazing, but it is expensive,” she added.

In time Kellie would hope that such treatment will eventually become more readily available as more specialists are trained to carry it out.

Her long term goal is to be a Neurosurgeon and she plans to keep in touch with Dr Ditsworth and his developments.

At the end of this month she will give a presentation in Kings College London on the pioneering work she witnessed and researched in LA.

“Beverley Hills had everything going on with homeless people and the amazingly wealthy. Everyone has great ideas and big dreams. It is a special place to be,” she said.

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