Microdiskectomy

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Herniated nucleus pulposis

Skeletal spine

Spine supporting structures

Cauda equina

Spinal stenosis

Overview

Recovery

Risks

Microdiskectomy

Alternative Names:

Spinal Microdiskectomy; Microdecompression

Risks:

Risks include the following:

Nerve root damage
Dural tears (tears to the tissue called the dura mater, which covers the spinal cord and spinal nerves)
Re-herniation of the same disk

Because of the small incision, the doctor may miss some disk fragments. This could result in persistent pain.

References:

Beers, MH. eds. Low Back Pain. In: Merck Manual of Medical Information, 3rd Home ed. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster; 2003: 515-521.

Koebbe, Christopher J., M.D., et al. “Lumbar Microdiscectomy: A Historical Perspective and Current Technical Considerations.” Neurosurg Focus 13 (2): Article 3, 2002.

Review Date: 3/4/2005
Reviewed By: Kevin Sheth, M.D., Department of Neurology, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard University, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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