Interlaminar Endoscopic Lumbar Discectomy - Clinical Outcome

Abstract

Objective: Evaluate the clinical outcome of patients with lumbar disc herniation (HDL) operated by endoscopic interlaminar microdiscectomy. We evaluated epidemiology, time to return to work, and technique-related complications as secondary outcomes. Method: Prospective longitudinal study, where patients with HDL with surgical indications were evaluated. They underwent endoscopic discectomy exclusively using the interlaminar technique. Clinical results were evaluated using the Oswestry 2.0 questionnaire (ODI) and the visual analog scale (VAS). In this study, we inserted the Macnab postoperative satisfaction index. In parallel with these indices, we analyzed the results regarding epidemiology variables, time to return to work, and complications. Such questionnaires were applied preoperatively, postoperatively the day after surgery, and one year after. Results: In 132 patients selected for the study, we obtained significant clinical improvement in the ODI and VAS questionnaires, and 81.3% of the patients had excellent and good Macnab index. The hospital stay was 22.7 hours, and the return to work was 30 days. The rate of complications with the method was 12.8%, with recurrence of disc herniation being the most common complication with 9.8% of cases. Conclusion: The endoscopic technique proved effective in treating lumbar spinal disc herniation with significant clinical improvement in the analyzed period, low incidence of complications, early postoperative rehabilitation, and results close to or superior to the gold standard technique. Level of Evidence III; Prospective cohort study