European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society
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Comparative Study
Intradiscal pressure after intradiscal injection of hypertonic saline: an experimental study.
Although chemonucleolysis with chymopapain is a long-established treatment for lumbar intervertebral disc herniation, serious complications have been reported. Accordingly, alternative substances for chemonucleolysis have been sought. The main beneficial effect of chemonucleolysis derives from the decrease in intradiscal pressure. ⋯ The intradiscal pressure of the hypertonic saline-injected group at 4 weeks was significantly lower than that of the control group, but by 12 weeks it had recovered. On the other hand, that of the chymopapain-injected group remained significantly lower than that of the control group at 12 weeks. The results of this study found that hypertonic saline injected into the intervertebral discs temporarily decreased the intradiscal pressure.