In 1982, he designed the Racz catheter, a flexible, spring-wound catheter with a small fluoroscopic probe. In 1989, he developed epidural lysis of adhesions, sometimes referred to as percutaneous adhesiolysis,[2] or simply the Racz procedure.[3] It is a minimally invasive, percutaneous intervention for treating chronic spinal pain often due to scarring after post lumbar surgery syndrome, sometimes called failed back surgery, and also low-back and radicular pain from spinal stenosis, a disease of aging.[4] The procedure is somewhat similar to an epidural[2] and is used when conventional methods have failed. The Racz procedure may employ the use of a wire-bound catheter to mechanically break-up or dissolve scar tissue, also called epidural adhesions or fibrosis, which have formed around the nerve roots, and allows for local anesthetics, saline, and steroids to be injected into the affected area.[5]
Racz (circled) during the 1956 Hungarian Revolution
Racz was born in Hungary[6] to parents with a financially meager background which he attributed in part to his family's resistance to join the Communist party.[7] He attended Semmelweis University Medical School,[8] and it was during his second year there that the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 had begun.[7] After seeing hundreds of injured people, he volunteered to help at the hospital. He said he received a signed directive to drive a truck and deliver sugar to the medical school clinics which he believed motivated the Hungarian Secret Police to seek him out for questioning. He also recalled a shooting incident where a bullet missed his head by "a few inches".[7]
On November 27, 1956, he fled from Budapest to Austria with his future wife Enid, his sister, brother-in-law, and a few others after the Soviets invaded the city.[7][9] He had no prior intention to leave Hungary until he learned from his mother that the Hungarian Secret Police were looking for him. Racz said if they found him, "That would have meant the end of my dreams to become a doctor. Perhaps I would have ended up in prison. Not that I had done anything but many other people ended up in prison following 1956 without committing any crime."[7] He arrived in the Austrian town of Eisenstadt where buses were waiting to take refugees to their new homes. Racz chose the bus to England, and he along with his family and other members of his group were transported to a military base in the Midlands.[7]
In 1977, Racz joined the then-new Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) and was designated as the Center's first Chairman of Anesthesiology. He held that position until March 1, 1999.[1] His work from 1977 to 2006 not only included treating patients, he also served as acting director of pain services at TTUHSC, and oversaw the expansion of operations and future development of the Messer-Racz International Pain Center named in recognition of Racz's work and the Messer family's financial contributions.[1][11][12] In 2015, Racz held the designation of Professor and Chairman Emeritus, Director of Pain Services for Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center.[1]
Throughout his career, Racz has also conducted research and co-authored articles with other experts in pain management to improve diagnosis and treatment of complex regional pain syndromes (CRPS), a long-term disorder of the nervous system which is a challenging pain problem that is often misunderstood and misdiagnosed.[13][14]
Racz's work with nerve stimulators, spinal cord stimulators, radiofrequency thermocoagulation, and a wide range of other pain management procedures is being used in interventional pain practices throughout the world.[15][16] He developed new designs in medical equipment and devices.[16]
In 1982, Racz designed the Racz catheter, a flexible, spring-wound catheter with a small fluoroscopic probe.[17] In 1989, he developed epidural lysis of adhesions, a minimally invasive, percutaneous procedure also known as the "Racz procedure", which is somewhat similar to an epidural.[2] It is used to treat patients with chronic low back pain due to post lumbar surgery syndrome, sometimes called failed back surgery, which involves scar tissue that has formed around the nerve root.[4] It is also used to treat protruding or herniated disks, fractures, degeneration,[18][19] or radicular pain from spinal stenosis, a disease of aging.[4]
In 1996, Racz was the first recipient of the Grover E. Murray Professorship, TTUHSC's highest award.[7]
In December 1998, the University Medical Center named him to a $1 million endowed chair in recognition of his work at TTUHSC and the University Medical Center.[1][21]
In 2004, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the American Society of Interventional Pain Physicians.[7][10]: 24
In October 2012, the New York/New Jersey Societies of Interventional Pain Physicians awarded Racz a lifetime achievement award.[1]
Selected works
Racz has published in many scientific publications.[22] Among his works are:
^ abcRafael Justiz; Ramsin M. Benyamin; Pradeep Chopra; Timothy R. Deer; Standiford Helm II (July 2012). "Percutaneous Adhesiolysis in the Management of Chronic Low Back Pain in Post Lumbar Surgery Syndrome and Spinal Stenosis: A Systematic Review". Pain Physician. 15 (4): 435–462. PMID22828693.
^Phillippe Mavrocordatos; Alex Cahana (2006). "Minimally Invasive Procedures for the Treatment of Failed Back Surgery Syndrome". Advances and Technical Standards in Neurosurgery. Vol. 31. Geneva, Switzerland: Springer-Verlag/Wien. pp. 221–252. doi:10.1007/3-211-32234-5_5. ISBN978-3-211-28253-3. PMID16768306. S2CID20927686.
^Racz, Gabor B.; Holubec, Jerry T. (1989). "Lysis of Adhesions in the Epidural Space". In Racz, Gabor B. (ed.). Techniques of Neurolysis. Current Management of Pain. Vol. 4. Springer. pp. 57–72. doi:10.1007/978-1-4899-6721-3_6. ISBN978-1-4899-6723-7. ISSN0923-2354.
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