The list of References to Dr. Reginald Knight's article about the minimally invasive lumbar interbody fusion procedure, DLIF or Direct Lateral Transpsoas Approach.
Direct lateral transpsoas lumbar interbody fusion may prove to be an important improvement in our methods of handling degenerative conditions affecting the lumbar spine.
A less invasive direct lateral transpsoas approach to the lumbar spine has proved to be an effective method of managing patients requiring interbody fusion of the mid-lumbar spine.
There are various devices that can be used as structural grafts and implants. However, the ideal standard of care is to provide an interbody fusion with iliac crest bone graft harvested from the patient at the time of surgery.
The risks of distrction involve an inadvertent injury to the dorsal root ganglion, fracture of the bony anatomy, and neural injury to the midline dura due to manipulation.
The added biological advantage of an interbody fusion technique with compression across a structural fusion cage or apparatus will add to the success of a lumbar arthrodesis procedure.