Background: Lumbar disc herniation (LDH) is the most common cause of sciatica. Percutaneous endoscopic discectomy (PELD) is indicated when conservative treatments fail, which has been proved effective. During conventional PELD, ruptured discs and loose fragments inside discs are removed as much as possible to guarantee a lower reherniation rate, but it inevitably would lead to deterioration of disc degeneration and loss of disc height after PELD. Ensuring sufficient decompression while alleviating the post-operation disc degeneration process is still a clinical problem. Objective: To evaluate the imaging and clinical outcomes of bi-needle PELD with intradiscal irrigation technique for the treatment of lumbar disc herniation (LDH). Study Design: Multicenter retrospective cohort study. Setting: Shanghai Changzheng Hospital, Naval Medical University, Shanghai, China. Methods: A total of 48 patients who underwent bi-needle PELD (B-PELD) or conventional-PELD (C-PELD) for LDH in our 2 spine centers were included in this study. There were 26 cases in the C-PELD group (male 12 cases, female 14 cases) with an average age of 34.6 +/- 6.8 years. And there were 22 patients in the B-PELD group (male 10 cases, female 12 cases) with an average age of 35.1 +/- 6.4 years. The difference in postoperative disc degeneration (Pfirrmann grades, disc-vertebra height ratios [D-V H ratios]), visual analog scale (VAS) of low back pain, and reoperation rates were compared between the 2 groups. Results: There was no significant difference in gender, age, disease duration, and surgical level between the 2 groups (P > 0.05). The postoperative VAS of back pain was 2.31 +/- 0.53 for the C-PELD group and 0.63 +/- 0.74 for the B-PELD group; the difference was significant (P = 0.013). The difference between the preoperative and postoperative D-V H ratios in the C-PELD group was significant (P < 0.0001), while it was not significant in the B-PELD group (P = 0.6708). The difference between the loss of D-V H ratios after surgery was significant between the 2 groups (P = 0.0003). The loss of D-V H ratios was higher in the C-PELD group. The difference between the preoperative and postoperative Pfirrmann grades in the B-PELD group was not significant (P = 0.7261); however, it was significant in the C-PELD group (P = 0.0012). The reoperation rate in the C-PELD group was 7.7%, and the reoperation rate in the B-PELD group was 4.5%; the difference was not significant (P = 1). Limitations: This study employed a retrospective design, and its inherent selection bias and limited statistical power should be considered. Conclusions: Bi-needle technique with saline irrigation maneuver showed a significant advantage of restoration of disc height and amelioration of disc degeneration compared to conventional PELD surgery.
