Percutaneous Nucleotomy in the Treatment of Cervical Disc Herniation: Report of Three Cases and Review

Abstract

We describe here three patients with cervical disc herniation who were treated at our department with manual percutaneous nucleotomy. These patients had suffered from cervical pain radiating into an upper extremity, with the duration of the conservative treatment varying between three and six months before the operation. After a follow-up of three years, radiating pain into the upper extremity was totally recovered in one patient, markedly diminished in one and remained unchanged in one. All patients were continuously working. The outcome of patients who underwent percutaneous nucleotomy for cervical disc herniation has been evaluated in only three previous papers, all focusing on automated cervical nucleotomy. We review the literature on cervical percutaneous nucleotomy and discuss the usefulness of this methodology.

Key words

Percutaneous nucleotomy - Manual nucleotomy - Cervical disc herniation