State of the Art for Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery

The second congress of the Pacic Asian Society of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (PASMISS) held in
Phuket,Thailand,August 5-6,2002,was highly s-cessful. Dr.Akira Dezawa, the president, had worked hard
in organizing the congress,which was well attended.All scientic papers presented were of the highest standard
and were worthy of publication in book form.This scientic meeting brought to light the practice of this modern
surgical technique as it is being performed by spine surgeons in the Asia-Pacic region.Dr.Dezawa has made a great
effort to collect the papers from the congress,and to have them edited and published as a text that covers
all aspects of the minimally invasive spine surgical approach. Minimally invasive spinal surgery will be a highlight
of operative approaches in the twenty-rst century and already has been popularized worldwide.

This procedure will provide surgical options that address several pathological conditions in the spinal
column without producing the types of morbidity commonly seen in open surgical procedures.
The contents of this book provide highly relevant and detailed information. I certainly believe that
it will be a great benefit to all orthopedic surgeons who are interested in performing minimally
invasive spine surgery. Charoen Chotigavanich,M.D.
Chairman,Spinal Section The Royal College of Orthopedic Surgeons of Thailand V Preface Recent decades have been
characterized by revolutionary changes in spinal surgery. Concurrent progress in implant technology and functional
en-scopes and the improvement of less invasive surgical techniques has opened a new dimension for spine surgery.



A Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Trial Comparing the Results of Microdiscectomy
Under Regional and General Anesthesia

Nucleoplasty as an Alternative Intradiscal Therapy: Indications and Technique

Surgical Procedures and Clinical Results of Endoscopic Decompression for Lumbar Canal Stenosis

Videotape-Assisted Thoracoscopy (VAT) for Anterior Release in Neuromuscular Scoliosis

Clinical Outcomes of Microendoscopic Discectomy for Extraforaminal Lumbar Disc Herniation

Percutaneous Vertebroplasty with Hydroxyapatite for the Treatment of Osteoporotic Vertebral
Burst Fracture of Thoracolumbar Spine

Surgical Results of Endoscopic Discectomy for Lumbar Disc Herniation: Three-Year Follow-up

Laparoscopy-Assisted Mini-Open Lateral Approach for Anterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion

Treatment of Internal Disc Derangement by Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion and Posterior Instrumentation

Endoscopic Discectomy for Extraforaminal Lumbar Disc Herniation

Anterolateral Approach to the Lumbar Spine

Posterior Endoscopic Discectomy Using as Endoscopic Lumbar Discectomy System Developed in Japan

Intraspinal Examination with a Spinal Fiberscope (Myelofiberscope)

Clinical Outcomes of Posterior Endoscopic Discectomy for Central Disc Herniation and Posterior
Endplate Lesions in the Lumbar Spine

Diagnosis and Endoscopic Release of the Piriformis Muscle Under Local Anesthesia for Piriformis Syndrome