ABSTRACT
Objective:To evaluate the efficacy of unilateral biportal endoscopy (UBE) in the treatment of central lumbar spinal stenosis.Methods:The retrospective case-control study was conducted. 36 patients with central lumbar spinal stenosis were treated by unilateral dual channel spinal endoscopy who underwent Beijing Mentougou District Hospital from November 2019 to September 2021 were collected. There were 19 males and 17 females, including 11 cases of L 5-S 1, 19 cases of L 4-L 5 and 6 cases of L 3-L 4; The age was (70.0±3.9) years old, and ranged from 55 to 82 years old. The observation indicators: the changes of dural sac area in lumbar magnetic resonance cross-section before and after surgery, and the improvement of visual analogue of pain (VAS) score and Oswestry dysfunction index (ODI) before and after surgery in 1, 3, 6, and 12 months, as well as the occurrence of complications. Measurement data with normal distribution were represented as mean±standard deviation ( ± s), and comprison between groups was conducted using the t test; Comprison between groups of count data was conducted using the chi-square test or Fisher exact probability. Results:Postoperative MRI showed that the area of the transverse dural sac increased from (65.5±6.7) mm 2 before operation to (173.5±5.5) mm 2 after operation after the removal of the ligamentum flavum ( P<0.05). The follow-up of 36 patients for 12 months after operation showed that the VAS score decreased from (8.5±2.0) scores to (1.3±0.8) scores, and the ODI decreased from (59.3±12.3)% to (13.6±1.6)%( P<0.05). No complications such as nerve injury, cerebrospinal fluid leakage and infection related to operation occurred in 36 patients. Conclusions:Unilateral biportal endoscopy is one of the safe and effective treatment methods in the treatment of central lumbar spinal stenosis, with obvious improvement in symptoms, and the increase in the area of the spinal dural sac. It can obtain good early clinical effects.
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: There were previous reports of redundant nerve roots (RNRs) focused on their clinical significance and pathogenesis. In this study, we investigated the significant radiologic findings that correlate with RNRs occurrence. These relations would provide an advanced clue for clinical significance and pathogenesis of RNRs. METHODS: Retrospective research was performed with data from 126 patients who underwent surgery for central lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). Finally, 106 patients with common denominators (inter-observer accuracy : 84%) were included on this study. We divided the patients into two groups by MRI, patients with RNRs and those with no RNRs (NRNRs). Comparative analyses were performed with clinical and radiologic parameters. RESULTS: RNRs were found in 45 patients (42%) with central LSS. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in severity of symptoms. On the other hand, we found statistically significant differences in duration of symptom and number of level included (p<0.05). In the maximal stenotic level, ligamentum flavum (LF) thickness, LF cross-sectional area (CSA), dural sac CSA, and segmental angulation are significantly different in RNRs group compared to NRNRs group (p<0.05). CONCLUSION: RNRs patients showed clinically longer duration of symptoms and multiple levels included. We also confirmed that wide segmental angulation and LF hypertrophy play a major role of the development of RNRs in central LSS. Together, our results suggest that wide motion in long period contribute to LF hypertrophy, and it might be the key factor of RNRs formation in central LSS.