Use of Cannulated Reamers to Facilitate Thoracic Diskectomy Using a Minimally Invasive Retropleural Thoracotomy Approach-Surgical Technique.

Background: The surgical treatment of symptomatic thoracic disk herniations is technically challenging. In the past decade, a minimally invasive retropleural thoracotomy approach has become more popular to treat this pathology. However, efficient bone removal to safely perform the diskectomy and spinal cord decompression is difficult with this technique because of the small incision size and long working distance in the thoracic cavity and the proximity of the compressed thoracic cord.
Objective: To describe a novel surgical technique for performing a thoracic diskectomy using a minimally invasive lateral approach using cannulated reamers to facilitate bone removal.
Methods: This technique was used in 7 consecutive patients who presented with thoracic myelopathy from a thoracic disk herniation. First, a standard lateral minimally invasive retropleural approach to the thoracic spine was performed. Partially threaded guide wires were placed in the posterior aspect of the vertebral bodies adjacent to the affected disk space, and sequential cannulated reamers were passed over the guidewires to perform partial corpectomies. The posterior annulus, posterior longitudinal ligament, and herniated disk material were then resected using Penfield dissectors and Kerrison rongeurs to complete the decompression.
Results: All 7 patients who underwent thoracic diskectomy using this approach had stable or improved neurologic function postoperatively. There were no complications related to the use of the cannulated reamer technique.
Conclusion: The use of cannulated reamers provides a simple and efficient method for safe bone removal to facilitate minimally invasive thoracic diskectomy using a lateral approach. This is an easily reproducible technique using commonly available equipment.
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