COMPREHENSIVE UPDATE ON THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF DEGENERATIVE SPINAL DISEASE: FROM CONSERVATIVE CARE TO MODERN INTERVENTIONS

Pham Anh Tuan, MD, PhD currently serves as Head of the Neurosurgery Division at the University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Ho Chi Minh City, and Head of Neurosurgery Department at Nguyen Tri Phuong Hospital. With over 20 years of experience in teaching, research, and clinical practice, he is recognised as one of Vietnam’s leading experts in neurosurgery and functional neurosurgery.

He earned his Doctor of Medicine degree in 2000, completed his Neurosurgery Residency in 2005, obtained a Master of Medicine degree in 2009, and received a PhD in Medicine in 2017 from the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City.

Throughout his career, Dr Pham Anh Tuan has actively researched, applied, and implemented advanced surgical techniques, particularly Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) for Parkinson’s disease and movement disorders, as well as a range of minimally invasive cranial and spinal procedures.

In addition to his clinical work, he is actively involved in education and scientific research. He has supervised numerous postgraduate students, published 45 scientific papers, including 16 in international journals, and contributed to four specialised textbooks.

Vu Truong Son, MD, MSc graduated from Hai Phong University of Medicine and Pharmacy in 2007 and taught there for two years following his graduation. He earned his Master’s degree in Tropical Diseases and International Health at the Institute of Francophone Tropical Medicine (IFMT) in 2009.

Dr Vu Truong Son began working at FV Hospital in 2013 and officially became the Head of the Infectious Disease Department in 2022. In May 2023, Dr Vu Truong Son additionally took on the role of Deputy Medical Director. Starting from early August 2024, he has been entrusted by the FV Hospital Board of Directors with the position of Acting Medical Director and he officially assumed the position of Medical Director in February 2025.

At FV, Dr Vu Truong Son has always received high trust from the Board of Directors and colleagues for his contributions to important policies such as the Response to Global Infectious Diseases and Infection Control, which have been successfully developed and implemented in the hospital. Additionally, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr Son made significant contributions to the Infection Control Unit and Infectious Disease Department at FV.

Dr Tran Luong Anh, Specialist Level II, is a neurosurgeon with more than 20 years of experience in diagnosing and treating complex neurological and spinal conditions. Before joining FV Hospital, he served as a treating neurosurgeon at the Neurosurgery Department of 115 People’s Hospital, where he performed thousands of neurosurgical procedures, including head trauma, intracranial haemorrhages, brain tumours and stroke.

He has extensive expertise in spine surgery, cerebrovascular surgery and minimally invasive neurosurgical procedures. In 2012, he completed an international neurosurgery residency programme at the University Hospital Center (CHU) of Poitiers, France, one of Europe’s leading centres for modern neurosurgery.

Dr Tran Luong Anh graduated from the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City in 2003 and completed Specialist Level I (2009) and Specialist Level II in Neurosurgery (2017) at the same institution. He is Head of Neurosurgery and Endovascular Neurosurgery Department, FV Hospital.

Huang Yilun, MBBS, MMed, MRCS, FRCSEd, FAMS is an orthopaedic surgeon with extensive experience in spinal surgery, particularly minimally invasive techniques and endoscopic cervical and lumbar procedures. He specialises in artificial disc replacement, chronic pain management via spinal injections, and radiofrequency ablation procedures.

After completing a fellowship in endoscopic spine surgery at Himnaera Hospital in Busan, South Korea, he further advanced his expertise in the treatment of complex trauma, limb reconstruction, and minimally invasive pelvic surgery.

Dr Huang completed SingHealth’s six-year Orthopaedic Residency Programme and was accredited as an Orthopaedic Specialist at Changi General Hospital (2018) and Sengkang General Hospital (2019). He previously served as Head of the Spine Surgery Unit at Sengkang General Hospital under the SingHealth Duke Spine Center.

In addition to his clinical work, he is a Clinical Lecturer at Duke-NUS Medical School and also teaches at the Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine (National University of Singapore) and the Lee Kong Chian School of Medicine (Nanyang Technological University). He currently leads the Endoscopic Spine Surgery Section of the Singapore Spine Society and has received numerous awards, including the NUS Excellent Educator Award (2016), the LKC Medicine Special Recognition Award (2022), and the Singapore Healthcare Quality Gold & Star Awards (2023–2024).

Dr Nguyen Cong, Specialist Level II, is an expert in neurosurgery with extensive experience in treating degenerative spine diseases using minimally invasive techniques, including percutaneous screw fixation and endoscopic spine surgery.

Dr Nguyen Cong graduated from University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City (2014), Specialist Level I in Neurosurgery (2019) and Specialist Level II in Surgery – Neuro and Cranial Surgery (2024). He has further strengthened his expertise through multiple international training programmes in France, South Korea, Hong Kong, and Thailand, focusing on endoscopic surgery, minimally invasive techniques, and deformity correction.

Before joining FV Hospital, he served as Head of the Neurosurgery Unit at Lanh Binh Thang General Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City. Since 2023, he has worked as a treating neurosurgeon in the Neurosurgery and Endovascular Neurosurgery Department at FV Hospital, where he continues to apply modern surgical techniques that support faster recovery, fewer complications, and improved patient outcomes.

Dr Pham Hoang Manh, Specialist Level I, is a pain management specialist with strong expertise in musculoskeletal pain, spinal pain, neuropathic pain, and cancer-related pain. With nearly 10 years of clinical experience, he combines advanced interventional techniques with specialised knowledge to provide effective pain relief and improve patients’ quality of life.

He graduated from the University of Medicine and Pharmacy at Ho Chi Minh City and has completed a range of advanced training courses in Vietnam and Europe, including Musculoskeletal Ultrasound and Ultrasound-Guided Regional Anaesthesia (Medipole Garonne Hospital, France); Chronic Pain Management (Geneva, Switzerland); Cancer Pain Management and Intrathecal Drug Delivery (Institut de Cancérologie de l’Ouest, CHU Angers, France); Neuromodulation for Chronic Pain (CHU Poitiers, France); and Advanced Chronic Pain Treatment (Hôpital de La Tour, Switzerland).

Before joining FV Hospital, Dr Pham Hoang Manh was a senior anaesthesiologist at Cho Ray Hospital. Since 2022, he has worked at the Pain Clinic of FV Hospital, where he continues to advance state-of-the-art pain management techniques and provide comprehensive patient care.