Effect of minimally invasive endoscopic channel system for spine-assisted TLIF on intervertebral foramen morphology,lumbar pain and function in patients with lumbar disc herniation
LI Weilin
LIU Jun
FENG Yuxu
WU Zongfang
GU Yue
CHU Xiaomin
Abstract：Objective To investigate the effect of minimally invasive endoscopic channel system for spine-assisted thoracoscopic lumbar interbody fusion(TLIF)on intervertebral foramen morphology,lumbar pain and function in patients with lumbar disc herniation(LDH).Methods A prospective study was conducted on 76 patients with LDH who were admitted from January to December 2023.According to the random number table method,they were divided into minimally invasive group and traditional group,with 38 patients in each group.The traditional group underwent open TLIF,while the minimally invasive group underwent TLIF assisted by minimally invasive endoscopic channel system for spine.Perioperative indicators and postoperative complications were compared between the two groups,as well as changes in lumbar pain,lumbar function,intervertebral foramen,paraspinal muscles,and spinal pelvic morphology parameters before and after surgery.Results The intraoperative blood loss and postoperative drainage volume in the minimally invasive group were less than those in the traditional group,and the duration of operation and time to the first postoperative ambulation were shorter than those in the traditional group(P＜0.01).The visual analogue scale(VAS)pain score in the minimally invasive group was lower than that in the traditional group at 7 d,1 month,3 months and 6 months after operation(P＜0.05).At 3 and 6 months after operation,the intervertebral space height,intervertebral foramen height,intervertebral foramen area,cross-sectional area of multifidus muscle and lumbar lordosis angle in the minimally invasive group were larger than those in the traditional group,while the distance from multifidus muscle to lamina and pelvic tilt angle were smaller than those in the traditional group(P＜0.05).The Oswestry disability index of the minimally invasive group was lower than that of the traditional group at 3 and 6 months after operation,and the scores of the Japanese Orthopaedic Association and the health survey summary evaluation scale were higher than those of the traditional group(P＜0.05).The overall incidence of complications was lower in the minimally invasive group than that in the traditional group(P＜0.05).Conclusion Minimally invasive endoscopic channel system for spine-assisted TLIF in the treatment of LDH has less trauma,faster postoperative recovery,and can relieve pain,which is conducive to the improvement of intervertebral foramen,paraspinal muscle,spine and pelvis morphology,early recovery of lumbar function and improvement of quality of life.
Keywords：lumbar disc herniationminimally invasive channel system for spinethoracoscopic lumbar interbody fusionpostoperative painintervertebral space heightcross-sectional area of multifidus musclelumbar lordosis angleOSWESTRY disability index
Publication Date：2026-01-28
Online Publishing Date：2026-02-05(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：8( 62-68,84 )