Background: Lumbar radicular pain often results from lumbar disc herniation, spinal stenosis, or
degenerative spondylolisthesis. Minimally invasive disc decompression procedures, such as nucleoannuloplasty or epiduroscopic neural decompression by laser, have been devised to treat such pain.
Objective: The short-term outcomes of disc decompression by endoscopic epidural laser decompression
(EELD) or transforaminal epiduroscopic laser annuloplasty (TELA) were compared in patients with lumbar
radicular pain due to disc herniation.
Study Design: A randomized, prospective trial.
Setting: The Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine at Spine Health Wooridul Hospital in
Daegu, Korea.
Methods: A total of 97 patients were enrolled in this study; 48 patients underwent EELD and 49
underwent TELA. The pain relief was evaluated at baseline and at 1, 3, and 6 months post-procedure
via the numeric rating scale (NRS). The Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) was recorded at baseline and at
the final follow-up. Postoperative wound pain was assessed over a 24-hour period. Complications and
side effects were also recorded, as were operative times (from local anesthetic infiltration at entry sites
to suturing of skin).
Results: At post-treatment months 1, 3, and 6 the mean pain scores of patients were significantly lower
(relative to pre-treatment baseline) regardless of the procedure used. However, the mean pain scores
did not differ significantly by procedure (EELD vs TELA). As well, the number of patients who obtained
relief from their pain and needed analgesics was not statistically significant. The irrigation volume was
significantly higher in the TELA group. Two patients undergoing TELA procedures experienced headache
during the procedures; however, no serious complications such as bleeding, dural/neural injuries, or
infection were recorded for either group.
Limitation: The observed significant reductions in pain (from baseline) lacked secondary outcome
substantiation and given the mid follow-up period, no long-term follow-up results were monitored.
Conclusion: Both EELD and TELA provide similar outcomes and are reasonable treatment options for
carefully selected patients with lower back or radicular pain.
Key words: Epiduroscopy, laser, annuloplasty, disc, herniation, TELA