Clinical anatomical study of minimally invasive spinal corridor establishment via the base of&nbsp; the superior articular process&nbsp;

Li Jiawei, Zhang Jing, Ji Qinyu, Tian Bowen, Li Xiaohe, Zhang Kai

doi:10.13418/j.issn.1001-165x.2026.4.03

2026 , Vol. 44 >Issue 4: 387 - 394

DOI: https://doi.org/10.13418/j.issn.1001-165x.2026.4.03

Clinical anatomical study of minimally invasive spinal corridor establishment via the base of the superior articular process

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1. Department of Imaging Center, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Baotou Medical College, Baotou 014030, Inner Mongolia, China; 2. Department of Pharmacy, Baotou Cancer Hospital, Baotou 014030, Inner Mongolia, China; 3. School of Basic Medicine, Inner Mongolia Medical University, Hohhot 010000, Inner Mongolia, China; 4. Department of Orthopedics, the Second Hospital of Ulanqab, Ulanqab 012000, Inner Mongolia, China.

Received date: 2026-02-15

Online published: 2026-07-27

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Abstract

Objective To evaluate the feasibility of establishing a safe minimally invasive endoscopic spinal channel via the base of the superior articular processes at the L3-5 vertebral levels, by performing radiographic measurements of the anatomical parameters of these processes in 203 samples. Methods CT data of 203 cases of lumbar vertebrae were collected from two tertiary hospitals in Inner Mongolia, with no restriction on gender and age ranging from 20 to 79 years. The participants were divided into three groups based on age: Group A (20-39 years), Group B (40-59 years), and Group C (60-79 years). The radiological data was imported into Mimics 21.0 software in DICOM format. Three parameters were measured, including the left-right diameter, anterior-posterior diameter, and puncture angle of the base of the superior articular process, using a multi-operator repeated measurement approach with the average value. The following parameter differences: (1) between the bilateral bases of the superior articular processes of the same vertebra in subjects of the same age and gender; (2) between genders for the same vertebra within the same age group; (3) between different vertebrae in subjects of the same age and gender; and (4) between different age groups for the same vertebra and gender; were compared. Results There were no statistically significant differences in anatomical parameters between the superior articular processes on both sides of the same vertebral body. For the same vertebral body and age group, there were significant differences in the anterior-posterior diameter, with males having larger values than females. There were no significant differences in the left-right diameter between genders in Group A, while in Groups B and C the differences between sexes for the same vertebral body and age group were statistically significant, with males having larger values than females. There was no consistent pattern of differences in the puncture angle between genders for the same vertebral body and age group. There were significant differences in the puncture angle among different vertebra bodies in subjects of the same age and gender, and the puncture angle at the superior articular process of the lower vertebrae was larger than that of the upper vertebrae, the other two anatomical parameters showed varying degrees of differences across different vertebral levels. Comparisons of the anterior-posterior diameter between the same gender and vertebral bodies among different age showed no significant differences in most cases. Comparisons of the left-right diameter between the same gender and vertebral bodies among different age showed significant differences in most cases, while differences in the puncture angle were inconsistent among different age groups. Conclusions From an anatomical perspective, it is feasible to establish a safe minimally invasive endoscopic spinal channel within the superior articular process at the basal level of the L3-5 vertebral bodies.

Key words： Superior articular process; ; ; Percutaneous endoscopic lumbar discectomy; ; ; Computed Tomography; ; ; Lumbar disc herniation; ; ; Lumbar spine

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Li Jiawei, Zhang Jing, Ji Qinyu, Tian Bowen, Li Xiaohe, Zhang Kai . Clinical anatomical study of minimally invasive spinal corridor establishment via the base of the superior articular process [J]. Chinese Journal of Clinical Anatomy, 2026 , 44(4) : 387 -394 . DOI: 10.13418/j.issn.1001-165x.2026.4.03

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