On March 24 and 25, 2023, the Meet the Experts™ 2023 Course took place in Lisbon, Portugal. This prestigious training event is promoted by the scientific journal European Spine Journal. Leading the course as chairmen were Professors Pedro Berjano and Claudio Lamartina, spine surgeons who also operate at the Rizzola Clinic. The theme of the two-day event, attended by approximately 130 doctors from around the world, was “Single Position Surgery of the Spine” (see details below). In addition to Pedro Berjano and Claudio Lamartina, the Rizzola Academy Foundation also participated in Meet the Experts as a sponsor, along with NuVasive and Siemens. At the beginning of one of the working sessions, the Director of the Scientific Committee of the Foundation introduced the Academy to the participants, while the Secretary General presented the Rizzola Clinic. This event in Portugal further confirmed Rizzola Academy’s international focus.

Single Position Surgery refers to the possibility of keeping the patient in a single position throughout the entire surgery when the spine is accessed from both the anterior and posterior sides. In spinal surgeries, it is sometimes necessary to change the patient’s position during the procedure. Positions can vary and include supine, lateral decubitus, or prone.

The main advantages of Single Position Surgery are:

• Reduced anesthesia time, thanks to the elimination of repositioning during surgery;
• Improved operating room workflow, as it avoids the need to reposition the patient and adjust the arrangement of operating room equipment;
• Minimally invasive surgical techniques, which reduce intraoperative bleeding and allow for faster post-operative recovery.