Minimally invasive surgical techniques for the treatment of lumbar disc disease

The goal of minimally invasive surgery in the treatment of lumbar discopathy is to achieve outcomes comparable to those of conventional surgery, with minimal risk of perioperative iatrogenic injury. Over the last two decades we have observed remarkable progress in the development of new surgical techniques: chemonucleolysis, transcutaneous discoidectomy, laser discoidectomy, intradiscal thermoablation, and other minimally invasive techniques. Laparoscopy, originally used in general surgery, has made its appearance in lumbar spinal surgery, and has found application in discoidectomy and anterior fixation. The further development of optics, imaging techniques, and new surgical instruments especially designed for minimally invasive spinal surgery are opening the way to completely new methods of treatment.