• Xu Dabo, Chen Ziqiang, Zhao Yinchuan, Ni Haijian, Chen Kai, Liu Yanbin, Fu Qiang, and Wang Chuanfeng.
• Department of Spine Surgery, Changhai Hospital, the Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China; Department of Orthopedics, Ningbo No.7 Hospital, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China.
• Pain Physician. 2016 Feb 1; 19 (2): 69-76.

BackgroundPercutaneous endoscopic interlaminar discectomy (PEID), which poses advantages for certain types of herniated disc, is gaining wider acceptance in clinical practice. We retrospectively analyzed the efficacy of the PEID technique in treatment of calcified lumbar disc herniation.Study DesignA retrospective case-control study.SettingUniversity hospital in China.ObjectiveTo evaluate the efficacy of the PEID technique in treatment of calcified lumbar disc herniation, and a comparison between calcified and noncalcified disc herniation was drawn to analyze the causes of herniated disc calcification.MethodsData from patients who underwent full-endoscopic lumbar discectomy in our department between March 2011 and May 2013 were collected. Thirty cases with calcified lumbar disc herniation were included in the study group, and 30 age-, gender-, and body mass index (BMI)-matched cases with noncalcified lumbar disc herniation served as controls. Perioperative data, preoperative and postoperative Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) values, MacNab scores, and postoperative low-extremity dysesthesia among patients in the 2 groups were collected.ResultsThe values of computed tomography (CT) in the calcified group were significantly higher than those in the noncalcified group (P < 0.01). The preoperative disease courses in the 2 groups were similar. However, there was a statistically significant difference in the duration of traditional Chinese medicines (TCM) administration (P < 0.01). VAS and ODI scores improved significantly after surgery, but there were no significant differences between the 2 groups (P > 0.05). Three months after surgery, the rate of low-extremity dysesthesia in the calcified group was significantly higher than that in the control group (P = 0.03) but became similar at 6 months. By applying MacNab criteria the proportions of good and excellent were greater than 90% in both groups, and there was no difference between groups (P > 0.05).LimitationsThe sample size was small in this retrospective study.ConclusionThe PEID technique is an effective method in the treatment of calcified lumber disc herniation, although the rate of postoperative dysesthesia is higher in this group during the early postoperative period. Long-term TCM administration may be related to the calcification of herniated lumbar discs.

31 keywords...

hide…