Laminectomy

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A laminectomy is a surgical procedure that removes a portion of the vertebral bone called the lamina. At its most minimally invasive, the procedure requires only small skin incisions. The back muscles are pushed aside rather than cut and the parts of the vertebra adjacent to the lamina are left intact. Recovery occurs within a few days.

A laminectomy is a surgical procedure involving removal of the lamina to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots.

- Trauma (fractures, hematoma) - Tumors (metastatic, intradural-extramedullary) - Epidural abscess

- Spinal stenosis causing neurogenic claudication and radiculopathy - Ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL)

- Large or central herniations compressing spinal cord or cauda equina.

- Intradural or extradural tumors causing mass effect.

- Epidural abscess requiring decompression and drainage.

- Unstable fractures with neural compression. - Decompression after spinal fractures associated with neurologic deficits.

- Posterior fossa decompression with C1 (± C2) laminectomy.

- Part of posterior approaches for fixation and fusion procedures.

Laminectomy is primarily indicated for relieving neural element compression caused by trauma, degeneration, tumors, infection, or congenital conditions. It may need to be combined with stabilization if spinal instability is present.

Laminectomy has normally been used as a standard approach for intradural spinal tumors but this procedure is associated with spinal instability and deformity. Laminoplasty was developed to overcome these limitations. Controversies still exist regarding its actual role in preventing spinal deformity in adults.

see Unilateral laminectomy

see Cervical laminectomy

see Lumbar laminectomy

Laminectomy complications

Laminectomy utilizing a high speed drill with an unprotected cutting drill bit can be rapid and effective, but it has been associated with known complications. Another technique utilizes a pediatric craniotome drill with the footplate attachment. Currently, there are no studies comparing clinical outcomes between these two stated decompressive techniques.

A retrospective review was conducted at a single institution. Two cohorts of patients were considered based on the technical method of laminectomy for decompression. One group had decompression with utilization of a high-speed drill while the other group had decompression with a pediatric craniotome drill with a footplate attachment. The outcomes from each group were compared based on the length of operation, estimated blood loss, and associated complications.

A total of 91 patients were included in the final analysis. Forty-five of the patients underwent laminectomy utilizing a footplate and forty-six utilizing a high-speed drill. The footplate group was associated with significantly shorter time of operation (159 minutes vs 205 minutes p=0.008). In addition, the footplate technique demonstrated less EBL (254 ml vs 349 ml), and less incidence of durotomies (2.2% vs 10.9%), however, neither of these two outcomes achieved statistical significance.

CONCLUSION: Despite being an older technique, the aforementioned cohort demonstrates shorter operative time in the footplate group without increased blood loss or incidence of durotomy. Although comparable results are operator dependent, this technique is a safe alternative for performing cervical and thoracic laminectomies ¹⁾.