Long-term results of microlumbar discectomy.

A long-term prospective study was carried out of 100 consecutive patients undergoing microlumbar discectomy (MLD) and fulfilling stringent selection criteria. A 95% long-term follow-up result was obtained at a mean duration of 8.6 years. At the 7-11-year assessment, 88% of patients had an excellent result, 5% a good result and 7% had either a poor result or new symptoms. Ten patients (10.5%) underwent repeat MLD during the course of the study; nine of the ten reoperations were performed at the same level as the original surgery. The percentage with an excellent result remained relatively constant (88-89%) throughout the study. No reliable predictors of long-term outcome were identified. The results suggest that microlumbar discectomy compares favourably with other surgical techniques with regard to long-term outcome.