Martin Knight MD, FRCS, MBBS

 

Martin Knight- Consultant Spinal Surgeon

Personal Details

Married - four children
Place of Birth: London, England
Nationality: British

Education

School: Charterhouse, Godalming, Surrey
Medical School: St Bartholomew's Hospital Medical School, London 

Qualifications

Bachelor of Medicine 1969
Bachelor of Surgery 1969
Primary Fellowship
Royal College of Surgeons 1971
Final Fellowship
Royal College of Surgeons 1974
Doctorate of Medicine 2002
Accreditation
Certificate of Orthopaedic Higher Surgical Training 1986 

Background

Martin Knight is a specialist spinal surgeon who trained at St Bartholomew's and St Thomas' and his research training was established at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School.

After a short-term commission in the Royal Navy to support Orthopaedic staff deficits following the Falklands War, he embarked upon a Consultant Orthopaedic post in Rochdale with an interest in the treatment of degenerative disc disease. Following in the footsteps of predecessors prosecuting conventional surgery there was an expected incidence of 'Failed Back Surgery'. Rather than pursue the same course of treatment he introduced keyhole percutaneous discectomy for revision treatment. Evaluation of outcomes after a year led him to introduce the KTP 532 laser disc decompression into the UK with prospective evaluation.

After two years having pushed out the envelope of this application the team defined the limitations of the technique. They introduced biportal flexible endoscopic intradiscal discectomy with laser assistance.

This expanded the application of keyhole surgery for the treatment of 1„a treatment and Failed Back Surgery. However, whilst the technique allowed larger or extruded discs to be addressed, this needed to be developed to address the problems of facet joint arthritis, instability, backward and forward slippage of vertebrae, sequestra. This led to the development of the uniportal technique of Endoscopic Laser Foraminoplasty for the treatment of chronic lumbar spondylosis, lateral recess stenosis, instability, spondylolitic spondylolisthesis, failed back surgery.

This research has warranted the initiation of a NHS supported a National Randomised Controlled Trial of Endoscopic Laser Foraminoplasty versus Pain Management at The Spinal Foundation.

This research in the lumbar spine has been paralleled by similar laser and endoscopic developments in the cervical spine and the development of a keyhole disc replacement.

Director and Consultant Spinal Surgeon - The Spinal Foundation April 1994 to present
Honorary Senior Lecturer - The University of Central Lancashire October 1998 to present
Honorary Research Fellow - Royal Post Graduate Medical School, London April 1974 to present
Honorary Research Fellow - Medical School, The University of Manchester October 1999 to September 2002 

Societies

British Orthopaedic Spine Society
British Orthopaedic Association (Fellow)
Royal Society of Medicine
British Orthopaedic Research Society
British Back Pain Research Society
British Laser Medical Society
European Laser Medical Society (Executive)
Arthroscopy Society of New York
Military Medical Society
Surgical Research Society
ISTHMUS - Founder member and British Representative
American Academy of Minimally Invasive Spinal Medicine and Surgery
North American Spine Society
European Society of Spine
International Musculoskeletal Laser Society - Founder member and British Representative
Commanderie de Bordeaux
1824 Club

President - International Congress of Lumbar Fusion and Stabilisation 1999
President - International Musculoskeletal Laser Society - 1999-2005
President - International Intradiscal Therapy Society - 2007

General Secretary - International Musculoskeletal Laser Society - 2005 - To Date 

Member of International Editorials Boards

Spine Arthroplasty Journal

Orthopaedia Traumatolgia Rehabilitai
Journal of Minimally Invasive Spinal Technique
Journal of Clinical Laser Medicine and Surgery International Advisory Board
World Association for Laser Therapy - 4th World Congress June 2002 

International and National Spinal Presentations

Multiple presentations and teaching workshops every year as detailed in the CV and typified by the activity in years:
2002 - 10 presentations
2001 - 12 presentations (several meetings cancelled or postponed
due to unforeseen circumstances)
2000 - 24 presentations
1999 - 17 presentations
36 publications between 1996 and 2002

A list of publications can be downloaded here.

Curriculum Vitae

A full CV can be downloaded here.

Should you require further information on any of the above please contact us.