European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study
Application of a modified thoracoabdominal approach that avoids cutting open the costal portion of diaphragm during anterior thoracolumbar spine surgery.
In the present prospective randomized controlled study, we compared the feasibility and effectiveness of our modified thoracoabdominal approach to anterior thoracolumbar spine surgery without cutting open the costal portion of diaphragm (extradiaphragmatic approach) with the traditional transdiaphragmatic thoracoabdominal approach. The traditional combined thoracoabdominal approach in anterior thoracolumbar surgery for spine tuberculosis is effective but seriously damages the diaphragm and causes various lung complications. We used an extradiaphragmatic approach for complete anterior debridement, bone grafting, and nerve decompression and compared its efficacy and complications with those of the traditional transdiaphragmatic thoracolumbar approach. ⋯ The modified extradiaphragmatic thoracolumbar approach for anterior thoracolumbar spine surgery is as effective as the traditional approach. However, associated surgical trauma is minimal, and the incidence of pulmonary complications is low.