Surgical laparoscopy & endoscopy
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Surg Laparosc Endosc · Oct 1995
Laparoscopic lumbar diskectomy: preliminary report of a minimally invasive anterior approach to the herniated L5-S1 disk.
Approximately 300,000 patients each year in the United States undergo laminectomy for disabling lumbar disk herniation. Postlaminectomy hospitalization is 3-7 days and convalescence may be prolonged. As an alternative to laminectomy, we have developed a technique for performing L5-S1 lumbar diskectomy laparoscopically. ⋯ Five patients were discharged the next day and two on the second postoperative day. L5-S1 laparoscopic lumbar diskectomy is feasible and safe. It may be an effective minimally invasive alternative to laminectomy.