Early clinical outcomes of microendoscopic discectomy for lumbar disc herniation; a comparison with Love's method

Abstract

Early clinical outcomes of microendoscopic discectomy (MED) were evaluated by comparing it with Love's method for lumbar disc herniation at L4/5 or L5/S1. Twenty patients treated by the MED method and 20 patients by Love's method, as a control group, were included in this study. Each surgery in both groups was performed by the same surgeon. Clinical outcomes in both groups were compared on the basis of operation time, blood loss, periods to initial walking, total dose of analgesics administered, and patient-based outcome using the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RDQ). While no significant difference in operation time, blood loss and the patient-based outcome were found, periods to initial walking were significantly shorter and total doses of analgesics administered were significantly lower in the MED group. It was consequently concluded that the MED method is a useful procedure for the treatment of lumbar disc herniation.