CLINICAL EFFICACY OF MICROSCOPE-ASSISTED SMALL INCISION IN THE TREATMENT OF LUMBAR DISC HERNIATION

Ping Cai^#, Dong Li^#, Jun Liu, Chenxi Zhou, Zhigang Hu, Zhiyong Chang, Yinlei Chen, Jianlong Xia^*

Department of Orthopedics, Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, Nanjing 210029, Jiangsu Province, China

Objective: To analyse the clinical efficacy of microscope-assisted small incision in the treatment of lumbar disc herniation (LDH).

Methods: In total, 100 patients with LDH were enrolled in this study from January 2019 to May 2020. The patients were divided into two groups: a control group treated with traditional surgical methods (n=50) and an experimental group treated with microscope-assisted small incision (n=50). The clinical efficacy of the two groups was compared.

Results: The operation time, postoperative hospitalisation time, and incision length in the experimental group were shorter than those in the control group (p<0.05). There was less intraoperative bleeding in patients in the experimental group than in the control group (p<0.05). The results showed that the excellent and good rate for surgery was 96% in the experimental group and 80% in the control group, and this difference was statistically significant (p<0.05). There were no differences in the 101-point pain Numeric Rating Scale (NRS-101) and Owestry Disability Index (ODI) scores between the two groups before surgery (p>0.05); however, the NRS-101 and ODI scores in the experimental group were lower than those in the control group after surgery (p<0.05). The incidence of complications was 2% in the experimental group and 10% in the control group, and this difference was statistically significant (p<0.05).

Conclusion: Microscope-assisted small incision for the treatment of LDH was found to have high clinical efficacy, offered a clear surgical field to improve the surgical effect, allowed complete decompression of the nerve roots, and reduced damage to the stable structure of the spine. The postoperative efficacy was highly satisfactory. It is therefore an ideal minimally invasive surgery.