[Indications, methods and results in percutaneous nucleotomy in lumbar disk hernia]

Abstract

To our knowledge, the method of percutaneous nucleotomy dates back to the first description made by Hijikata in 1975. Compared to the classical hemilaminotomy, the main advantage of this method is that it reduces bone and soft tissue damage in the segment to a minimum. Furthermore, this method avoids disagreeable complications encountered in chemical nucleotomy, for a example, anaphylactic shock, the escape of the nucleolytic agent into the spinal canal, etc. The indication for this method should be avoided in the case of a prolapse within the spinal canal and especially when it is displaced outside the level of the disc. In the period between 1979 and 1981 we carried out percutaneous nucleotomies in 20 patients with a disc herniation mostly combined with a narrow spinal canal or spondylolisthesis. The clinical results from 14 of the 20 patients were described as "very good" or "good". We consider the proportion of patients showing good clinical results to be high, bearing in mind that the indication was not just disc hernia alone but was in most cases associated with other lumbar pathologies.