OBJECTIVE: To present some technical considerations about interbody fusion by direct lateral retroperitoneal transpsoas approach and its initial results. METHODS: Non-randomized prospective study of 14 patients undergoing interbody fusion via lateral approach, with evaluation of initial results and complications. RESULTS: We collected and analyzed data from 14 patients with a total of 27 levels operated. The average operative time was 146 minutes and blood loss was on average less than 50 ml. Ten patients required supplemental percutaneous fixation with pedicle screws. VAS scores for the lumbar region and lower limbs and ODI had significant improvement in the postoperative period. There was an associated case of postoperative infection and thromboembolism that required reoperations. CONCLUSION: This technique has revolutionized the care of patients requiring fusion of T6-7 to L4-5. Following the five basic steps and using intraoperative monitoring, this technique is safe and reproducible with encouraging clinical results and low rate of serious complications.

Objective: To compare clinical outcomes in laborers who have undergone open transforaminal interbody fusion (TLIF) and minimally invasive transforaminal interbody fusion (MIS TLIF). Methods: 78 patients were submitted to lumbar arthrodesis by the same two spine surgeons partners from January 2008 to December 2012. Forty-one were submitted to traditional open arthrodesis and 37 to the minimally invasive procedure. Three patients were not included because they had already retired from work. The analyzed variables were length of hospitalization, length of follow-up, type of access (TILF or MIS TLIF), need for blood transfusion, percentage of improvement or worsening after surgery, pre-and postoperative VAS scale, time off work, pre-and postoperative Oswestry disability index, and general aspects of the laborers such as age, education, profession, working time, amount of daily weight carried at work, and use or not of personal protective equipment. Results: Time off work was longer in the TLIF group (average of 9.84 months) compared with the MIS TLIF group (average of 3.20 months). Significant improvement in postoperative VAS and Oswestry was achieved in both groups. Average length of hospitalization was 5.73 days for the TLIF group and 2.76 days for the MIS TLIF group. Conclusions: Minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion presents similar results when compared to open TLIF, but has the benefits of less postoperative morbidity, shorter hospitalization times, and faster rehabilitation in laborer patients.Keywords: Arthrodesis; Lumbar vertebrae; Spinal fusion; Minimally invasive surgical procedures; Occupational health. rEsUMO Objetivo: Comparar resultados clínicos emtrabalhadores braçais submetidos à artrodese transforaminal aberta (TLIF) e minimamente invasiva (MIS-TLIF

Objective: The objective of this study is to relate the use of intraoperative electromyography with surgical time, proper placement of screws, type of curve and time spent per screw in idiopathic scoliosis correction surgery in a group of surgeons from Belo Horizonte. This study used the database of protocol evaluation of patients operated in the service, and separately analyzed the results of motor and somatosensory potentials. Methods: Retrospective study of 80 patients undergoing surgery for correction of idiopathic scoliosis between December 2008 and January 2015. A single group of Belo Horizonte spine surgeons performed the intraoperative electromyographic (EMG) monitoring. EMG was performed with stimulation of pedicle screws in patients undergoing instrumentation with pedicle screws as fixation elements. Results: The sample consisted of 85% females (mean age 17 years) and 37.5% of cases had classification type 1AN of Lenke. Of the total surgical cases, 60% had EMG changes. Of the total cases analyzed, 66.3% were true positives for the result. Conclusion: Intraoperative monitoring with EMG is a very important tool for the surgical treatment of patients with scoliosis undergoing instrumentation with pedicle screws. It enables to check if the screw is located on the correct path, helping to decrease the error rate and providing corrections to the surgical approach through a change of strategies. Moreover, it contributes to decrease the time to screw positioning and the total surgical time.

OBJETIVOS: Analisar as correções obtidas através da instrumentação segmentar seletiva torácica, utilizando parafusos pediculares, em pacientes portadores de escoliose idiopática com modificador lombar B ou C; verificar a segurança da técnica e a descompensação das curvas compensatórias não instrumentadas; observar a perda de correção das curvas instrumentadas e não instrumentadas com o tempo. MÉTODOS: Estudo retrospectivo de pacientes portadores de escoliose idiopática com curvas 1B, 1C, 2B e 2C submetidos a tratamento cirúrgico por via posterior utilizando parafusos pediculares. As variáveis analisadas foram: sexo, idade, níveis acometidos pela escoliose, níveis instrumentados, número de parafusos pediculares utilizados, classificação segundo Lenke, ângulos de Cobb pré-operatórios coronal e sagital (incluindo inclinações), ângulos de Cobb no pós-operatório imediato e tardio e perda da correção das curvas com o tempo. Foram submetidos 20 pacientes portadores de escoliose idiopática à tratamento cirúrgico seletivo de agosto/2004 a outubro/2007. Destes, 18 permanecem em acompanhamento e foram incluídos no trabalho porque satisfizeram os critérios de inclusão. RESULTADOS: A média do ângulo de Cobb no pré-operatório foi de 52,61º, no pós-operatório imediato foi de 17,89º e no pós-operatório tardio, 22,15º, com média de correção imediata de 34,72° e perda de correção média 4,26º em 39,78 meses. Obteve-se uma correção espontânea média imediata de 22,62° nas curvas compensatórias não instrumentadas e perda média de 2,72º dessa correção em 39,78 meses. Não ocorreram complicações neurológicas, infecciosas ou descompensações das curvas lombares. CONCLUSÃO: Todos os pacientes apresentaram melhora substancial em termos estéticos, clínicos e radiológicos. Ocorreram perdas parciais da correção com o tempo, porém sem culminarem em descompensação das curvas não instrumentadas. Este trabalho mostra indícios de eficácia e segurança do tratamento cirúrgico seletivo da escoliose idiopática utilizando-se parafusos pediculares a médio/longo prazo.