Although there is no urgency to operate, surgery is indicated in the following cases: • Motor deficit (paralyzing sciatica) • Unbearable pain that does not improve with morphine. • Cauda equina syndrome (problems in the perianal region, dysfunction of the sphincters, particularly the urinary ones)

The purpose of the surgery is to retract the compressions of the nerve elements. For this, it will be necessary to remove the part of the tissue that obstructs the canal (bone formations, articular surfaces, ligaments, part of the intervertebral discs). • The intervention is performed under general anesthesia. A radiological assessment of his posture is carried out under the control of an image amplifier, which allows locating the part of the canal that has been planned for the intervention and thus locating the incision point. • The skin incision is made in the dorsal region, its size will depend on the number of levels to be intervened and on the need or not to fix the vertebrae. After the incision is made, the surgeon will spread the muscles in the lower back to gain access to the lumbar canal. Surgical acts can be performed differently depending on the type of stenosis. Depending on the diagnosis, the clinical examination and the radiographic results, the operation will consist of removing the fragments of the bone or the joints, the ligaments or the herniated disc. Each case is therefore different, and the modalities will be explained by your surgeon. • These release of the nervous elements is the basic gesture.