Minimally Invasive Resection of Spinal Tumors with Tubular Retractor: Case Series, Surgical Technique, and Outcome

BACKGROUND: Traditional laminectomy for excision of spinal tumors involves extensive dissection of the midline spinous ligaments, greater blood loss, and risk of delayed segmental instability. The minimally invasive technique of spinal tumor resection using tubular retractors can achieve safe and complete tumor resection while preserving the structural and functional integrity. The authors present their experience of minimally invasive spinal surgery for spinal tumors in this case series. METHODS: The authors retrospectively reviewed 41 consecutive spinal tumor cases operated by the MISS-Key Hole technique using the tubular retractor system at Sree Utharadom Thirunal Hospital, Kerala, India between January 2015 and January 2020. Preoperative clinical findings, surgical technique, operative statistics, compli-cations, and patient outcomes were analyzed in detail. RESULTS: We could successfully achieve gross total resection in 39 cases (95.12%) and subtotal resection in 2 cases. There were 4 cervical, 1 craniovertebral junction, 20 thoracic, 14 lumbar, and 2 sacral lesions, of which 4 were extradural, 1 extradural foraminal, 33 intradural, and 3 dumbbell lesions. The Modified McCormick Scale at 12 weeks had improved by 1L2 scales in all but 2 patients. There was no cerebrospinal fluid leak, pseudomeningo-cele, or infection in our series. CONCLUSIONS: This series demonstrates the feasibility, safety and effectiveness of the keyhole approach for excision of intradural and extradural spinal tumors extending up to 2 levels. Careful case selection, good preoperative planning, meticulous microsurgical resection, and watertight dural closure are crucial for successful outcome. Early mobilization, less blood loss, and avoidance of delayed instability are the advantages of minimally invasive spinal surgery when compared with open surgery.