From February 26 to March 1, 2024, Dr. Rosenthal, the Head of the Section of Spine Surgery in Regional Hospital Bad Homburg, and once served as the President of German Spine Society (DWG) in 2013, visited the Affiliated Hospital of Putian University as an international visiting professor, and carried out a series of academic exchange activities in the hospital, including outpatient consultations, ward rounds, surgical guidance, surgical practice, internal lectures, discussions on department management and complex cases, and public lecture, etc.

Highlight

From February 26 to March 1, Dr. Daniel Rosenthal, an international spine master from Germany, visited the Affiliated Hospital of Putian University which locates in Putian, the hometown of the Goddess of the Sea, Mazu, as a visiting professor for one week. Dr. Rosenthal is the Head of the Section of Spine Surgery in Regional Hospital Bad Homburg, and once served as the President of German Spine Society(DWG) in 2013. He had great achievements in thoracoscopic spine surgery, and he personally has performed around 4000 thoracoscopic spine surgeries by 2023. The Department of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery of the Affiliated Hospital of Putian University is the "Clinical Medical Research Center for Minimally Invasive Diagnosis, Treatment and Rehabilitation of Spinal Diseases in Fujian Province". It has long been committed to minimally invasive techniques for spinal diseases, digital design, 3D printing, artificial intelligence, robotic orthopedic surgery and other techniques, and owns the domestic first-class and provincial-level leading minimally invasive spine surgery team of distinctive features and advanced concepts.

During the one-week visit, Dr. Rosenthal and the minimally invasive spine surgery team participated in academic exchange activities such as outpatient consultation, ward rounds, surgical guidance, surgical practice, key and complex case discussion, and master’s public lectures. At the same time, he also shared the advanced experience of the German Spine Society (DWG) in training spine specialists, which provides reference and inspirations for Chinese hospitals to train spine specialists. On the last day of the visit, he was interviewed by a local TV station and shared that minimally invasive spine surgery technique has been developed for over 30 years, and with the invention of new surgical instruments, and spine surgeons continue to innovate and develop new surgical techniques, the minimally invasive spine surgery technique has been in a dynamic development, and that in the future, technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Robotics can make the spine surgery more minimally invasive. The Department of MISS of Affiliated Hospital of Putian University, with its advanced equipment and an experienced team, will be a strong force to promote the development of minimally invasive spine surgery in China, and he is looking forward to seeing the growing of this team. At the time of parting, Dr. Rosenthal said that academic exchanges are always mutual, and he also derived experience and friendship before his return. He also thanked President KANG Mingqiang, Party Secretary LIN Haibin, Director DAI Jianhui and the minimally invasive spine surgery team for their hospitality during the week, and for having the opportunity to sample the local cuisine and experience the custom of Putian. It was an unforgettable visit to Putian.

Welcome Ceremony

On the morning of February 26th, President KANG Mingqiang, Prof. LIN Haibin, Director DAI Jianhui and members of all administrative departments of Affiliated Hospital of Putian University held a welcome ceremony for Dr. Rosenthal. During the ceremony, the two sides introduced their  hospitals and departments respectively. According to the introduction, Dr. Rosenthal is the second visiting professor for the Department of Spine Surgery after the establishment of "Sino-German Communication Center for Spine Surgery" in the hospital.

President KANG Mingqiang, awarded a letter-of-appointment of visiting professor to Dr. Rosenthal.

Afterwards, Dr. Rosenthal went to the Department of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery of Affiliated Hospital of Putian University for the consultation of three patients who would be operated during the week. Dr. Rosenthal patiently communicated with each patient about their conditions, did a detailed check-up for them, and discussed the surgical plan with the doctors of the department.

In the afternoon, Dr. Rosenthal visited the operating room of the hospital and had a detailed understanding of the surgical equipment and instruments used in the hospital. The Department of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery is specialized in minimally invasive diagnosis and treatment and rehabilitation, and has long been committed to basic and clinical research on the application of precision surgery in orthopedics. The department is well-equipped with high-definition microscope, 3D C-arm, computer-navigation robotic surgical system, ultra-sonic scalpel system, percutaneous spinal endoscopy system and so on.

After visiting the operating room, Dr. Rosenthal went to the department to have an in-depth academic exchange with Prof. LIN Haibin, Director DAI Jianhui and his team on three tumor cases of thoracic spine, discussing the diagnosis, surgical approach and whether or not to choose fusion from different perspectives. There was a heated discussion on the spot, and both sides learned a lot from each other.

Outpatient Consultation

On the morning of February 27, Dr. Rosenthal came to the outpatient building of Affiliated Hospital of Putian University to see patients with Dr. ZHANG Huaizhi from the minimally invasive spine surgery team. The patients had already arrived, waiting at the entrance of the room and Dr. Rosenthal warmly greeted them in Chinese.

Dr. Rosenthal and Dr. ZHANG Huaizhi worked together to finish the half-day consultation by asking the patient's main symptoms, doing physical examination, checking their films, discussing about the diagnosis and the preliminary treatment plan for each patient.

For each patient's questions, Dr. Rosenthal answered them patiently, generating a relaxing and warm atmosphere for the patients. After the consultation, they also discussed in detail the arrangements for the four cervical and lumbar spine surgeries in the coming days, so as to plan the most appropriate surgical plan for the patients.

Sino-German Surgical Experience Sharing

On February 28th, Dr. Rosenthal went to the operating room of Affiliated Hospital of Putian University and performed two microscopic surgeries together with Prof. LIN Haibin and Dr. ZHANG Huaizhi. The first patient was diagnosed with lumbar spinal stenosis and received a lumbar fusion surgery from a posterior lateral approach; the second patient was diagnosed with cervical disc herniation with radiculopathy and received a cervical discectomy from an anterior approach.

The colleagues from China and Germany exchanged ideas and learned from each other, sharing their experience in microscopic surgery.

The Department of Minimally invasive Spine Surgery of Affiliated Hospital of Putian University has developed rapidly under the leadership of Prof. LIN Haibin and Prof. DAI Jianhui over the years, and has mastered all kinds of minimally invasive spine surgery techniques, and its featured techniques include microscope assisted atlantoaxial fusion, robotic-assisted surgery for atlantoaxial deformity, robot-assisted lumbar fusion, Mixed Reality (MR)-assisted spine surgery, cervical keyhole surgery, and so on. Dr. Rosenthal's visit will provide new ideas for the department to further develop minimally invasive techniques.

Impressive Surgical Technique from Chinese Colleagues

On the morning of February 29, Dr. Rosenthal and the Chinese surgeons jointly performed a microscopy assisted two-level cervical fusion surgery from an anterior approach, which went very smoothly.

Afterwards, Dr. Rosenthal observed a lumbar discectomy (a tubular surgery with microscopy) performed by Prof. LIN Haibin and Dr. ZHANG Huaizhi, Dr. Rosenthal was very interested in this surgery because in Germany he performs lumbar discectomy under microscope only.

Dr. Rosenthal was impressed by the perfect presentation of the tubular surgery performed by Chinese colleagues. The incision was small, the operation time was short and the outcome was excellent. And he said that maybe this technique can be carried out in his department in the future.

International Spine Master’s Public Lecture

In the afternoon of February 29th, Dr. Rosenthal shared two lectures: "The Concept of Targeted Surgery" and "Educating Spine Surgeons - The German (DWG) Experience". Doctors onsite actively participated in the discussion, which generated a lively atmosphere in the meeting room.

During the lecture, Dr. Rosenthal shared his understanding on minimally invasive surgery. He shared that target surgery aims to reduce the approach related trauma on noble tissue and functionality to a minimum while achieving optimal therapeutic results, and that it does not necessarily mean “percutaneous or tubular surgery”, but it certainly implies less extensile and disruptive procedures and target surgery doesn’t have to be “better”, if it’s “equal” and less harming, then it is the approach to go. The development of minimally invasive techniques is not only a matter of innovations in surgical instruments or surgical procedures, but also a matter of surgeons keeping abreast of the times and learning from each other.

In the second lecture, Dr. Rosenthal introduced that the spine surgeons in Germany are coming from neurosurgeons and orthopedic/trauma surgeons. The Society for Spine Research and the Society for Spine Surgery merged to become the German Spine Society(DWG) in 2006. And since 2010, the DWG has been offering the training program for neurosurgeons, orthopedic/trauma surgeons who have completed a 6-year residency program. For these two types of surgeons, the program provides comprehensive and standardized courses for learning knowledge of the spine, as well as hands-on opportunities for simulated surgery in cadaver laboratories or on realistic human models. After completing a 2-year training program in spine surgery, the DWG will award certification to the surgeons. Depending on the doctor’s practical experience and academic status, the certificate is divided into 3 levels: Basic, Master and Excellence.

After Dr. Rosenthal's lecture, Dr. LI Xing from the Dept. Of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery shared several OPLL cases.

Wound Rounds & Case Discussion

March 1 was the last day of Dr. Rosenthal's visit at the Affiliated Hospital of Putian University. In the morning, Dr. Rosenthal and the minimally invasive spine surgery team did the ward round together and checked up the patients who had been operated during the week in detail, and all of them recovered well and the patients highly praised the work of Dr. Rosenthal and the team of the hospital.

Afterwards, Dr. Rosenthal had an in-depth discussion with Prof. WU Yujun and Prof. DAU Jianhui on the surgical treatment of spinal tumors, spinal infections, spinal tuberculosis and other complex diseases. Dr. Rosenthal patiently shared his experience in handling these complex cases in Germany and used drawings to show the key surgical steps in a vivid way.

After the discussion, Dr. Rosenthal was interviewed by one local TV station and shared his feeling of week-long working in Putian. He shared that Affiliated Hospital of Putian University is a modern and high-level hospital with advanced medical equipment and medical talents. The operating room of the Dept. Of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery is fully equipped and the doctors in the department are experienced in dealing with all kinds of complex spine disorders, which shows the strong comprehensive strength of the department. Dr. Rosenthal hoped that in the future, academic exchanges between the two hospitals could be carried out through video conferences and sending fellow doctors to each other's hospitals for exchanges, so as to make progress together.

Also, he shared that minimally invasive spine surgery technique has been developed for over 30 years, and with the invention of new surgical instruments, and spine surgeons continue to innovate and develop new surgical techniques, the minimally invasive spine surgery technique has been in a dynamic development, and that in the future, technologies such as Virtual Reality (VR), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Robotics can make the spine surgery more minimally invasive,  thus providing patients with higher quality medical services.

Dr. Rosenthal had a wonderful week in Putian and expressed his heartfelt thanks to the Chinese colleagues for their hospitality and hopes to have the opportunity to visit this beautiful coastal city again in the future!