How is minimally invasive microsurgery used to remove intravertebral tumors?

Intraspinal tumors, also known as spinal cord tumors, include a general term for primary or metastatic tumors that occur in the spinal cord itself and in various tissues adjacent to the spinal cord within the spinal canal. The annual incidence of primary intraspinal tumors is 3-10 per 100,000 population. Intravertebral tumors can occur at any age, but are more common between the ages of 20-50. The nature of the tumor is most common in adults with nerve sheath tumors accounting for approximately 49% of adult intradural tumors, followed by spinal meningiomas accounting for 17%. Tumor compression of the spinal cord and nerve tissue causes pain and neurological dysfunction in patients and severely affects social productivity. Unlike intracranial tumors, which are different in pathological nature, intravertebral tumors are mostly benign and have a good prognosis after total surgical excision. The current conventional surgical approach is a posterior midline approach, sublaminar stripping of the paravertebral muscles and ligaments, bilateral resection of the diseased lamina and upper and lower lamina to reveal the tumor. The traditional surgery extensively destroys the skin, subcutaneous tissue, muscles, supraspinous ligaments, interspinous ligaments, spinous processes, bilateral laminae, small joints and some small joint capsules in the posterior aspect of the spine. This traditional surgical approach has been used for decades with positive results. However, not only is the surgery traumatic, but postoperative spinal instability, pain and limited spinal mobility may occur. With the advancement of modern imaging techniques such as CT and MRI, the diagnosis of intravertebral lesions has become increasingly accurate, and a precise three-dimensional diagnosis can be made preoperatively, which provides a guarantee for precise surgical positioning, and the concept of minimally invasive spine surgery has been implemented in intravertebral tumor surgery. In the treatment of intravertebral tumors, unilateral hemivertebral revealing resection is widely used in clinical practice, and microsurgical total resection of intravertebral tumors is performed through a laminar opening. Compared with conventional open surgery, minimally invasive surgery provides adequate visualization and less harassment to the spine and tissues along the way, which theoretically greatly reduces the alteration of spinal biomechanics, avoids possible spinal instability, pain and limited spinal mobility, and thus prevents degenerative changes in the spine, etc. Surgery is safe and effective, with small incisions, minimal trauma, minimal bleeding, and rapid postoperative recovery, and because postoperative care is easy and reduces the use of chemicals, surgery is the best treatment for most patients who are afraid of surgery.