Surgical technique

The appropriate size of the prosthesis (Medtronic Sofamor Danek) was determined by preoperative templating and radiographic studies. All surgical procedures were performed by the same surgeon using the anterior approach via a right-sided skin incision. The posterior longitudinal ligament was excised completely. For the purpose of adequate decompression, the spinal canal and neuroforamen were also decompressed. The endplates were prepared using the Bryan disc milling technique, which creates 2 concave surfaces. Then after endplate preparation, we used saline to irrigate the operative site before insertion of the devices.