A neurosurgeon in Lucknow has today developed a new drill to help with the keyhole approach to spinal surgery especially keyhole surgery for cervical spondylitis and disk prolapse.

Ravi Dev, a young associate professor in the department of neurosurgery at King George's Medical University (KGMU), has developed a vertebral drill that he says will save patients from the complicated and painful open gold standard procedures.

The central commerce ministry has awarded a patent for the instrument, which facilitates a small hole near the neck to correct a prolapsed disk or provide relief to a patient of acute spondylitis.