ArticleJournal of spine surgery (Hong Kong)2021
Intraoperative disc level marking with needle: a technical note and prospective study on 30 patients.
Article in Journal of spine surgery (Hong Kong), 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 2 citations in OpenAlex.
- Accuracy in spinal level determination, including transitional vertebrae: an ASReview supported systematic review.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2026Review
- A Self-Developed Mobility Augmented Reality System Versus Conventional X-rays for Spine Positioning in Intraspinal Tumor Surgery: A Case-Control Study.Neurospine · 2024Article
- New Ultrasound-Guided Approach to Access to the Posterolateral Part of Intervertebral Lumbar Discs: A Cadaveric Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundWrong-level surgery is a rare but unresolved issue in spine surgery. Some proposed protocols with high success rates, but it remains a risk with potential complications for the patient. Surgical navigation offers more accurate surgery, without additional irradiation related to the imaging device, in order to optimize the surgical guidance.
methodsWe describe our institutional technique with a needle placed under fluoroscopy at 3 cm from the incision line at the disc level to be operated, in order to guide the surgical approach; and we report a prospective evaluation of all patients during a six-month period operated by microdiscectomy for symptomatic lumbar discus hernia, whose hernia level was landmarked with this technique. We collected demographic, clinical-such as visual analog scale (VAS) of pain and Oswestry disability index (ODI) scores-operative and irradiation data for effective dose calculation.
resultsThirty patients were included in the study. No wrong-level procedure was performed. Mean time for landmarking was 2.22 [1-5] minutes. Average operative time was 54.5 [30-150] minutes. The effective dose related to the imaging device use was 0.032 (0.007-0.092) mSv. The effective dose was also correlated to body mass index and disc level (P=0.05). The operative duration, complication rate and postoperative VAS and ODI scores were similar to the current literature.
conclusionsWe advocate the use of percutaneous needle guidance, avoiding wrong-level microdiscectomy and helping the surgeon as a "navigation-like" device with minimal additional irradiation for the patient.
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