Clinical Outcomes of Full Endoscopic Lumber Spine Surgery in the Management of Recurrent Disc Herniation

Introduction: Full-endoscopic lumbar discectomy (FELD) has been suggested as a potentially advantageous substitute for the surgical therapy of re-herniated lumber discs. This prospective study aimed to determine the clinical outcomes of full endoscopic lumber spine surgery in re-current disc herniation. Material and Methods: This prospective observational study was conducted over 2 years, from May 2020 to May 2022 with a year follow-up period. The study included patients who presented to the outpatient department with lumbar disc re-herniation that was confirmed to be symptomatic by conducting clinical evaluation, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and/or computed tomography (CT) scans. Depending on the location and size of the disc herniation, either an interlaminar or transforaminal route was used during full endoscopic lumbar spine surgery. Results: 442 lumbar disc surgeries were carried out in total over the 2-year research period. Of these procedures, 87 cases were reherniation surgeries, which made up about 19.6% of all lumbar disc surgeries. The majority of patients (80% in transforaminal and 75% in interlaminar) had incisions less than 8mm in length. Less than 5% of cases in both method groups experienced complications during the procedures, most of which were mild dural tears and bleeding. Conclusion: This study concluded that recurring lumbar disc herniations can be safely treated with full endoscopic lumber spine surgery with good intra and post-operative outcomes while minimizing further structural damage compared to open interventions.