Surgery Overview
Discectomy is surgery to remove lumbar (low back) herniated disc material that is pressing on a nerve root.
It's often done as microdiscectomy, which uses a special microscope to view the disc and nerves. This larger view allows the surgeon to use a smaller cut (incision). And this causes less damage to surrounding tissue.
Before the disc material is removed, a small piece of bone (the lamina) from the affected vertebra may be removed. This is called a laminotomy or laminectomy. It allows the surgeon to better see the herniated disc.
You may be asleep or have medicine to relax you during surgery. And the area will be numbed if you're awake. It's often numbed even if you are asleep. You might go home the same day you have surgery. Or you might need to stay in the hospital or surgery center overnight.
