Minimally Invasive Procedures

Receive expert care at the Nash Institute for Minimally Invasive Surgery (NIMS) in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. When you choose UNC Health Nash, you benefit from skilled surgeons who help you heal faster and spend less time in the hospital.

What are Minimally Invasive Procedures?

During minimally invasive procedures, your surgeons use small incisions instead of one large opening. Because these incisions are small, they allow you to recover quicker and feel less discomfort than traditional, open surgeries. Your minimally invasive surgery will use one or both of these methods:

• Laparoscopic surgery – Uses a tool with a tiny video camera (laparoscope) to look into your body
• Robotic surgery – Operates with a magnified 3D high-definition vision system and tiny instruments that bend and rotate further than a human hand

Benefits

If minimally invasive surgery is your best option, you may benefit from:

• Faster recovery
• Increased safety
• Less time in the hospital
• Less pain and scarring
• Less stress on your organs and immune system
• Reduced need for narcotic pain medication
• Smaller incisions

Minimally Invasive Procedures Available at UNC Nash

When you partner with the skilled surgeons at Nash, you get access to a team of professionals who together perform over 30 different types of minimally invasive procedures. Receive minimally invasive treatment for the following.

Head & Neck/ENT Surgery

Receive care from specialists at UNC Eart, Nose & Throat at Nash who treat the head, neck, ear, nose, and throat with procedures like:

• Balloon sinuplasty – Uses a small, flexible balloon catheter to open up blocked sinus passageways to drain mucus
• Endoscopic sinus surgery – Uses a small scope to remove blockages in your sinuses
• Videostroboscopy – Uses video recording with a technique called stroboscopy to check your vocal cords for causes of hoarseness, swelling, growths and other symptoms

General Surgery

Turn to surgeons at Nash Surgery to perform general surgeries such as:

• Appendectomy – Removal of your appendix
• Cholecystectomy – Removal of your gallbladder
• Colectomy, or bowel resection – Removal of all or part of your colon
• Colostomy – Opening formed by drawing the healthy end of your large intestine or colon through an incision in your abdominal wall
• Diagnostic laparoscopy – Procedure used to see inside your abdomen
• Hernia surgery (inguinal, ventral, hiatal) – Operation that consists of pushing your hernia lump back into your body, tying it off or removing it
• Liver biopsy – Removal of a small piece of your liver tissue to examine it for signs of damage and disease
• Nissen fundoplication – Procedure used to create a new valve between your esophagus and stomach to treat gastroesophageal reflux disease and hiatal hernia
• Small bowel resection – Removal of part or all of your small bowel, also known as the small intestine
• Splenectomy – Removal of your spleen

Gynecologic Surgery

For procedures dealing with the female reproductive system, rely on Nash OB-GYN Associates experts to perform your:

• Diagnostic laparoscopy/lysis of adhesions – Treats abdominal and chronic pelvic pain
• Hysterectomy – Removal of all or part of your uterus
• Myomectomy – Removal of your uterine fibroids to take out noncancerous growths in your uterus
• Oophorectomy/adnexal surgery – Removal of your fallopian tube and ovary
• Tubal ligation – Sealing of both of your Fallopian tubes as a birth control measure, known commonly as “getting your tubes tied”

Urologic Surgery

Our expert urologic partners at Rocky Mount Urology Associates are trained to perform a wide range of procedures, including:

• Hand and robotic-assisted nephrectomies - Removal of kidney or kidney tumor
• Robotic-assisted prostatectomy - Removal of the prostate
• Percutaneous nephrolithotripsy (PCNL) - Removal of kidney stones
• Extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (ESWL) shockwave therapy for kidney stones
• Holmium Laser Enucleation of the Prostate (HoLEP) - Treatment of an enlarged prostate
• Transurethral resection of bladder tumor (TURBT) - Removal of bladder tumors
• Botox injections for overactive bladder

Neurological Surgery

Receive neurologic care from specialists at UNC Neurosurgery at Nash, such as:

• Brain tumor removal using an image-guided 3D navigational system that helps the surgeon work more precisely
• Lumbar microdiscectomy – Removal of a small part of your bone over the nerve root to help with pain caused by a lumbar herniated disc
• Peripheral nerve surgery (carpal tunnel and ulnar nerve entrapment) – Reroutes healthy nerves to take over for injured nerves to improve function and decrease pain
• Spinal decompression – Stretches your spine to relieve back or leg pain
• Spinal fusion – Fuses together two weak, painful bones in your spine (vertebrae) to heal into one strong, solid bone
• Vertebral fracture repair – Repairs your compressed spine by filling the bone with cement

Orthopedic Surgery

Our surgeons at UNC Orthopedics at Nash treat patients for orthopedic injuries and diseases of the body’s musculoskeletal system. Ask about the following surgeries:

• Arthroscopic surgery (minimally invasive) of the elbow and wrist
• Arthroscopy of the ankle
• Percutaneous (stabilized) treatment of fractures

Hip & Knee

Our orthopedic surgeons also perform hip and knee procedures, including:

• ACL and PCL reconstructions – Rebuilds damaged knee ligaments)
• Arthroscopic-assisted fixation of fractures around the knee
• Arthroscopic surgery (minimally invasive) of the hip
• Cartilage grafting procedures – Restores strong cartilage in bones
• Cartilage repair and debridement – Removal of damaged tissue
• Limited incision total hip replacement
• Meniscal repair and debridement
• Partial knee replacements

Shoulder

Rely on our orthopedic surgeons to treat your shoulder conditions with arthroscopic shoulder surgeries, such as:

• Debridement – Removal of damaged tissue from the shoulder joint
• Debridement of the rotator cuff
• Repair and removal of the acromioclavicular joint (AC joint) and distal clavicle
• Repair and debridement of the proximal biceps tendon (consists of the short head and long head of your biceps)
• Repair of the rotator cuff
• Surgery of the labrum (rim of cartilage in your shoulder joint) and synovium (connective tissue in your joints)
• Total shoulder replacement