Laminectome, a New Drilling Kerrison Rongeur for Partial Hemilaminectomy

Abstract

Partial laminectomy is commonly used in spinal surgery, and the Kerrison rongeur, drill, and ultrasonic bone aspirators are instruments used for laminectomy. Alternatively, a simple, cheap, and safe instrument, the laminectome, was designed by us for partial laminectomy. Inspired by the classic model of a Kerrison rongeur, a new instrument was designed in which instead of the superior sliding blade, a modification to hold a surgical drill was added to the rongeur model. Manual grasping of the handles of this new instrument approximates the superior sliding drill to the lower limiting base, and then the accompanying action of the drill penetrates the intervening bone of the lamina. The handling of the instrument is very easy; production is inexpensive, and an ordinary surgical drill could be attached to it. Laminectomy with this instrument is quite comfortable and safe, and it effectively shortened the surgical time in our cases. The laminectome is a very practical and safe instrument and can be used safely for partial laminectomy. Copyright © 2012 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.