Nucleoplasty Treats Herniated Disks

A new procedure called nucleoplasty offers relief to patients with herniated disks and is less invasive than disk removal by surgery. The procedure removes problem tissue by applying controlled levels of heat to the affected disk.

The patient is mildly sedated while the surgeon, guided by x-ray images, advances a needle into the disk. A special wand is placed through the needle that releases radio frequency (RF) energy, heating the area and evaporating the nucleus material inside the disk. The procedure, which requires about one hour, is being performed by surgeons at Stanford University Medical Center (Stanford, CA, USA). Of the 45 patients who have had the procedure, only one has not shown improvement. None experienced complications such as bleeding, infection, or nerve or spinal cord damage. Patients are not required to remain in the hospital afterward. However, the procedure cannot help patients with a severely herniated disk, an unstable spine, neurologic symptoms, or stenosis.

"The goal is to decrease disk pressure so it doesn't pinch the nerve and so the pain is taken away,” said Yung Chen, M.D., director of the Stanford Interventional Spine Center and an assistant professor of functional restoration.





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