LUMBAR MICRODISCECTOMY WITH INTRASPINE® – A CASE SERIES

ABSTRACT Objective To assess postoperative outcomes following lumbar microdiscectomy (LMD) with and without the use of a dynamic intralaminar device IntraSPINE ® . Methods A non-randomized single-surgeon retrospective analysis. Consecutive elective surgery was performed on patients with lumbar disc disease over a 16-month period. The study group was determined by electronic theatre database. Ninety-two (62 LMD and 30 ILD) of the 95 eligible patients were included in the study, with three being excluded due to incomplete data sets. The pain scores were assessed pre- and postoperatively using a 4-point scale (0 – pain free; 1 – mild; 2- moderate; 3 – severe). Results The reduction in postoperative leg pain was similar (LMD 1.9 vs. IntraSPINE® 1.8) but the reduction in postoperative back pain was greater in the IntraSPINE® group (LMD 0.5 vs. IntraSPINE® 1.0; p = 0.17). Early recurrence of disc herniation (