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Modified transcorporeal anterior cervical microforaminotomy assisted by O-arm-based navigation: a technical case report

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Abstract

This study was done to present our surgical experience of modified transcorporeal anterior cervical microforaminotomy (MTACM) assisted by the O-arm-based navigation system for the treatment of cervical disc herniation. We present eight patients with foraminal disc herniations at the C5–C6, C6–C7, and C7–T1 levels. All patients had unilateral radicular arm pain and motor weakness. The inclusion criteria for the patients were the presence of single-level unilateral foraminal cervical disc herniation manifesting persistent radiculopathy despite conservative treatment. Hard disc herniation, down-migrated disc herniation, concomitant moderate to severe bony spur and foraminal stenosis were excluded. We performed MTACM to expose the foraminal area of the cervical disc and removed the herniated disc fragments successfully using O-arm-based navigation. Postoperatively, the patients’ symptoms improved and there was no instability during the follow-up period. MTACM assisted by O-arm-based navigation is an effective, safe, and precise minimally invasive procedure that tends to preserve non-degenerated structures as much as possible while providing a complete removal of ruptured disc fragments in the cervical spine.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Je Min Son and In-Sook Cho for their assistance with this study. This study was supported by a grant from the Wooridul Spine Hospital.

Conflict of interest statement

None of the authors has any potential conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Wooridul Spine Hospital, 47-4 Chungdam-dong, Gangnam-gu, Seoul, 135-100, Korea

    Jin-Sung Kim, Gun Choi & Sang-Ho Lee

  2. Department of Orthopaedic surgery, Wooridul Spine Hospital, Seoul, Korea

    Sang Soo Eun & Nicolas Prada

Authors
  1. Jin-Sung Kim
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  2. Sang Soo Eun
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  3. Nicolas Prada
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  4. Gun Choi
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  5. Sang-Ho Lee
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Correspondence to Jin-Sung Kim.

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Kim, JS., Eun, S.S., Prada, N. et al. Modified transcorporeal anterior cervical microforaminotomy assisted by O-arm-based navigation: a technical case report. Eur Spine J 20 (Suppl 2), 147–152 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00586-010-1454-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00586-010-1454-2

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