Revisiting Ligament-Sparing Lumbar Microdiscectomy: When to Preserve Ligamentum Flavum and How to Evaluate Radiological Results for Epidural Fibrosis


Ozay R., Ogur T., Durmaz H. A., Turkoglu E., Caglar Y. S., Sekerci Z., ...More

WORLD NEUROSURGERY, vol.114, 2018 (SCI-Expanded) identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 114
  • Publication Date: 2018
  • Doi Number: 10.1016/j.wneu.2018.02.186
  • Journal Name: WORLD NEUROSURGERY
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus
  • Keywords: Disc herniation, Epidural fibrosis, Ligamentum flavum, Lumbar spine, Magnetic resonance imaging, Microdiscectomy, POSTLAMINECTOMY RAT MODEL, DISC HERNIATION, PERIDURAL SCAR, DISKECTOMY, PAIN, LAMINECTOMY, LAMINOTOMY, SURGERY, SCALES
  • Hacettepe University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: Preserving the ligamentum flavum (LF) during lumbar spine surgery can help to limit the extent of postoperative epidural fibrosis (EF), which is a potential cause of persistent leg pain. We present a retrospective analysis of microdiscectomy with preservation of the LF to evaluate the effects of the two LF mobilizing techniques (reflecting inferiorly or medially vs. removing completely) on EF and clinical outcomes.