Method of transforaminal endoscopic microdiscectomy in the treatment of hernias of intervertebral discs of the lumbar spine

The aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of transforaminal endoscopic microdiscectomy in patients with herniated intervertebral discs at the L₃–S₁ level of the lumbar spine. Material and methods. A retrospective analysis of the treatment of 468 patients with hernias of intervertebral discs of the lumbar spine was conducted. In the preoperative period, all patients underwent an magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography scan — examination of the lumbar spine, functional radiographs, and general clinical examinations were performed. Results. According to the results of studies in the postoperative period, a significant improvement in the quality of life of the patients was revealed in accordance with the Oswestry (the average for the group was 35.98%, which corresponds to a good result). There was a positive dynamics of pain in Visual analogue scale (in the preoperative period — 8.8±0.7, 6 months after the operation — 1.2±0.5 points with a predominance of lumbodynia and with an almost complete absence of radicular syndrome). In 28 (6.0%) patients, a hernia recurred within 6 months, however, in the remaining 440 (94.0%) patients, positive results of neurological symptoms were observed in dynamics. Conclusions. The obtained results confirm the high efficiency of transforaminal endoscopic microdiscectomy and the low risk of postoperative complications.