Abstract: Objective To evaluate the efficacy of the transforaminal endoscopic spine system(TESSYS) percutaneous transforaminal endoscopic technique for treatment of lumbar disc herniation. Methods From August 2010 to May 2011, 42 cases of lumbar disc herniation with average age of 39.5 years(range, 20~62 years) who underwent percutaneous endoscopic surgery were included in this retrospective study. Of the 42 cases, 22 were males and 20 females.The mean course of disease was 11 months(range, 3 months~6 years). The involved segments were L3/4 in 3 cases, L4/5 in 26 cases, and L5/S1 in 13 cases. The surgery was performed under local anesthesia. The visual analogue scale(VAS), Japanese Orthopaedic Association(JOA) Scores, Oswestry disability index(ODI) and modified MacNab criteria were employed to measure the clinical outcome. Results The operation was successful in all the cases. The mean operation time was 70 min(range, 55~120 min) with the blood loss of 5~15 mL. Only 3 cases were found complicated with transient paraesthesia in lower limbs. Another 3 cases suffered from leg pain recurrence after relief and 1 case had no significant relief. All these problems were relieved after the conservative treatment. There were no infection, dural matter tear and intraoperative neurovascular injury in any of the cases. The mean follow-up period was 9 months. The preoperative mean VAS of low back and leg pain decreased from (5.8±1.4) and (7.4±2.2) points to (1.6±0.9) and (1.4±0.2) points at 9th month postoperatively. The JOA scores increased from (12.1±3.7) to (22.5±2.1) points while the ODI decreased from (68.83±14.18)% to (21.02±11.34)%. The effects were excellent in 12(28.6%) cases, good in 25(59.5%) cases, fair in 4(9.5%) and poor in 1(2.4 %) according to modified MacNab criteria with the sum of excellent and good rate up to 80.1%. Conclusion As an effective minimally invasive treatment for lumbar disc herniation, TESSYS percutaneous transforaminal endoscopic technique for lumbar discectomy can ensure reliable clinical outcome with less complications, early functional recovery and good prognosis.

Key words: transforaminal, endoscope, minimally invasive treatment, lumbar disc herniation