NO INDICATIONS FOR PERCUTANEOUS LUMBAR DISKECTOMY

A questionnaire was used to assess rite outcome of automated percutane ous lumbar discectomy (APLD), to correlate patients' data and to ident ify criteria for pain relief and patient satisfaction. Two hundred and thirty eight patients were operated on by APLD between 1988 and 1990. The questionnaire returned by 182 patients (76.4%) was suitable for e valuation. The mean follow-up was 2.5 years. Overall, 60% reported pai n relief and 52% were satisfied with APLD. Conventional operations wer e carried out subsequently on 45 patients (25%). Bivariate and multiva riate analyses were done for preoperative (age, gender, neurological d eficit, Lasegue's sign, sports activity), perioperative (weight of dis c material removed level of APLD) and post-operative (conventional nuc leotomy, change in condition, pain relief, satisfaction, sports activi ty, return to work, compensation claims) parameters. The only signific ant parameter for improvement in condition and pain relief was age, wh ere patients younger than 41 do better. Risk factor for reoperation we re a positive Lasegue's sign and over 41 years of age. Patient satisfa ction was significantly higher for patients without sensory deficit pr eoperatively.