Surgery: laminectomy

Introduction

The lumbar spinal canal is where the spinal nerve roots sit, and the boundaries are the disc in front and the spinal lamina behind. When we as spinal surgeons refer to a laminectomy, we are talking about a spinal operation where we aim to open up the spinal canal and free up the nerves by removing the lamina. This operation is needed if the spinal canal has become smaller or narrowed over time which is known as spinal stenosis.