Percutaneous Lateral Discectomy of the Lumbar Spine

Nine patients with clinical and myelographic evidence of disc herniation at the L3-L4 and L4-L5 levels were treated by percutaneous lateral discectomy, a new surgical method of decompressing herniated intervertebral discs in the lumbar region. All patients had complete relief from radicular pain and were discharged within two or three days. The operation is relatively simple to perform and has little associated postoperative morbidity. Also, complications associated with conventional laminectomy and discectomy, e.g., postoperative bleeding, perineural scar formation, and reherniation through the posterior fenestration, are avoided.