Cutting-edge surgery, experience in both the public and private healthcare sectors, and a personal history shaped by pain have made this spine specialist a leading expert who truly understands patients from the inside.

For years, Dr. Augusto Covaro has seen thousands of backs in his consultation room and operating theatres. Young and older patients, active and sedentary, affected by sports or by long hours spent at a desk. But there is one essential difference in the way he approaches medicine: he knows spinal pain not only as a surgeon, but also as a patient. He has lived with spinal problems since the age of 16 and has undergone surgery on three occasions — an experience that has profoundly shaped his professional career and the way he cares for those who place their trust in him.

This personal experience was key in shaping a vocation that he had already identified from a very young age. Covaro decided to specialise in traumatology and, more specifically, spinal surgery — a complex and demanding field that is still surrounded by many fears and misconceptions.

“The spine affects every aspect of a person’s life,” explains Dr. Augusto Covaro, a specialist in traumatology and spine surgery. “I have experienced it first-hand, and I know how disabling it can become if it is not treated properly.”

Trained between Argentina and Spain, with a career combining public and private hospitals, the specialist has developed a solid career at some of the leading centres in his field. After completing part of his training in Madrid and Barcelona, he also undertook international training in Sweden and Denmark. This experience allowed him to work with advanced techniques and develop a broad surgical perspective that he now applies to his daily practice.

Throughout his career, he has worked for years in public healthcare and in major private hospital groups. This dual experience has given him a comprehensive perspective of both the healthcare system and the patient.

He currently works in the private sector, collaborating with different centres and travelling wherever his expertise is needed. A spine surgeon does not work from a single location, explains Covaro. Patients need solutions, and these should be provided in the setting that best suits each case.

One of the main areas of his work is minimally invasive surgery applied to the spine, a technique that allows smaller incisions, faster recovery and reduced risks. Thanks to technological advances, it is now possible to operate using endoscopic cameras, an evolution that has completely changed the way many spinal conditions are approached. “Performing spine surgery using endoscopic techniques has been a before-and-after moment,” he says. “It is less invasive and allows for more precise results.” Beyond surgery, Dr. Covaro also devotes an important part of his time to teaching and training other professionals. He works as a consultant and trainer in advanced surgical techniques, convinced that continuous improvement is a shared responsibility.

Medicine cannot be practised from a position of comfort, he says. “You always have to keep learning, because what is cutting-edge today will become standard practice tomorrow.” In his consultations, one of the ideas he emphasises most often is related to modern lifestyles. Covaro is clear that the human body is not designed to spend eight hours a day sitting in front of a screen.

We are not evolutionarily designed for a sedentary lifestyle and to spend eight hours in an office. A sedentary lifestyle is our worst enemy, he explains. The spine suffers when we do not move, when we do not carry weight, and when we do not activate our muscles. For the specialist, a sedentary lifestyle is one of the greatest threats to spinal health in modern society.

That is why he insists on prevention as an essential part of treatment, although he acknowledges that it is not always enough. Genetics, ageing and other factors also play a role, but staying active and maintaining a strong body significantly reduces the risk of serious conditions. More than the perfect mattress or pillow, what protects the spine is movement,” says Covaro. “The body needs to stay active.

His experience as a patient has also given him a particular sensitivity during the most delicate moments of the surgical process. He knows the fear patients feel before entering the operating theatre and the vulnerability of placing yourself in someone else’s hands. “I have been on the other side, lying under the operating theatre lights, without knowing what the outcome would be,” he recalls. “That has taught me to take much greater care of the human side.”

This closeness is now one of the qualities his patients appreciate most. Covaro does not only seek to solve the physical problem, but also to provide emotional support throughout a process that can often cause anxiety.

Spine surgery is surrounded by many taboos,” he explains. “My aim is for patients to understand, trust and feel supported.

Looking to the future, Dr. Augusto Covaro is clear that technological development will continue to shape the field, but without ever losing sight of the person.

His goal is to continue applying the most advanced techniques, train new generations of specialists and keep improving the quality of life of people suffering from spinal conditions.

Technical excellence is fundamental, he concludes, “but without humanity, medicine remains incomplete.”