[Recalibration of the lumbar canal, an alternative to laminectomy in the treatment of lumbar canal stenosis].

A technique is described for widening the lumbar vertebral canal in the treatment of lumbar stenosis. This method, which preserves part of the posterior arches, has the aim of avoiding the instability which accompanies extensive laminectomies of the whole lumbar spine. The preservation of the posterior arches allows a ligamentoplasty to be made with dacron in stable spines and a combined fusion with internal fixation applied to the posterior arches to be made in cases of spondylolisthesis. The results of a prospective series of 32 patients have confirmed the effectiveness of the method both on the stenosis and on the post-operative spinal stability.