Minimally invasive spine surgery with endoscopy, navigation, robotics, and artificial intelligence: Clinical evidence and future directions

Table 3 Summary of minimally invasive treatment modalities for spinal disorders

Disease type	Minimally invasive method	Specific procedure	Outcome evaluation
Degenerative disc disease	Percutaneous endoscopic discectomy	Small skin incision; herniated disc tissue is removed under direct endoscopic visualization to relieve neural compression	Pain relief in > 85% of patients; rapid postoperative recovery; short length of hospital stay
Spinal canal stenosis	Endoscope-assisted decompression	Resection of hypertrophic bone and ligament via an endoscopic approach to enlarge the spinal canal	Improved walking capacity; reduced pain; relatively short postoperative recovery period
Spinal scoliosis	Robot-assisted surgery	Robot-guided precise pedicle screw placement combined with corrective maneuvers to restore normal spinal alignment	Significant deformity correction; low postoperative complication rate; high patient satisfaction
Spinal tumors	Percutaneous biopsy, radiofrequency ablation, and cement augmentation	CT- or MRI-guided biopsy followed by radiofrequency ablation of the tumor and subsequent cement injection to stabilize the spine	Marked pain relief; short recovery period; applicable to benign and selected malignant lesions

CT: Computed tomography; MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging.