Preoperative Planning Using Three-dimensional Printing for Full-endoscopic Spine Surgery: A Technical Note

Transforaminal full-endoscopic spine surgery (TF-FESS) is a novel minimally invasive spine surgery that requires only an 8-mm skin incision and causes minimal damage to the paravertebral muscles. To perform TF-FESS safely and efficiently, preoperative planning is quite important as the intervention requires anatomical understanding and high technical skills. Recently, three-dimensional (3D) printing has become a useful tool in various surgeries, and several studies have addressed its efficacy; however, there are no reports on the application of 3D printing to FESS. In this study, we present two cases of severe lumbar deformities for which preoperative 3D printing was useful. The 3D printing enabled the surgeons to visualize and plan the drilling of the superior articular process for a successful foraminoplasty at a low cost. The manufacturing equipment cost about USD 900 and is able to produce an actual-size model at a cost of less than USD 10 per patient. In conclusion, preoperative planning using 3D printing should be adopted to safely perform FESS.