• Farbod Asgarzadie and Larry T Khoo.
• Division of Neurological Surgery, University of California Los Angeles, Santa Monica, CA 90404, USA.
• Orthop. Clin. North Am. 2007 Jul 1;38(3):387-99; abstract vi-vii.

AbstractStandard open posterior decompression is well established and familiar to virtually all spine surgeons. However, this traditional surgical treatment of lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) is often associated with significant postoperative pain, disability, and dysfunction. This article reviews the use of a minimally invasive microendoscopic approach for bilateral decompression of lumbar stenosis by way of a unilateral approach. This technique has been shown to provide symptomatic relief equivalent to that of open discectomy, with significant reductions in operative blood loss, postoperative pain, hospital stay, and narcotic usage. Furthermore, the article explains the rationale, indications, and surgical techniques for minimally-invasive LSS surgery and presents the authors' 4-year outcomes data.

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