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Clinical Trial Summary

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the benefits of anulus fibrosus repair utilizing Xclose™ compared to a discectomy without anulus fibrosus repair.


Clinical Trial Description

Discectomy surgery is intended to remove the impinging fragment on the nerve root thus alleviating the pain and providing the nerve with a better healing environment. Discectomy procedures entail removing a bony portion of the vertebral body to access the posterior side of the disc space, and then removing the impinging fragment from the disc. The fragment being removed can either be contained within the wall of the anulus, which requires incision into the anulus to remove it, or it could be extruded through an anular fissure. In the absence of a safe and easy method to close or seal the defect in the anulus following a discectomy procedure, surgeons are left with no alternative but to leave the anulus in this compromised state which is largely the current practice. This rent in the soft tissue of the anulus fibrosus can lead to postoperative problems if the remaining nuclear tissue in the disc pushes through the anular defect or incision causing recurrent or persistent pain.

Initial studies involved the placement of sutures to seal the anular defect. This work strongly suggested that microsurgical anular reconstruction can reduce recurrent herniations and re-operations, post discectomy. Unfortunately, this technique is not easy to perform and may pose an increased risk to the patient.

This study utilizes the Xclose™ Tissue Repair System to re-approximate the compromised tissue of the anulus fibrosus in appropriately randomized patients in an effort to quantify the benefits of anular repair for discectomy patients. ;


Study Design

Allocation: Randomized, Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Single Blind (Subject), Primary Purpose: Treatment


Related Conditions & MeSH terms


NCT number NCT00760799
Study type Interventional
Source Anulex Technologies, Inc.
Contact
Status Completed
Phase Phase 4
Start date March 2007
Completion date January 2012

See also
  Status Clinical Trial Phase
Not yet recruiting NCT06358040 - Opioid Dispenser for Microdiscectomy/Laminectomy N/A
Completed NCT00868335 - Cervical Spine; Movement Before and After Anterior Cervical Discectomy, With or Without a Cervical Disc Prosthesis N/A