IN A PREVIOUS paper it was shown that fusion of the vertebral bodies could be attained when the intervertebral disk was removed through the transabdominal approach.1 It was predicated at that time that the same result could be obtained by removing the disk after a laminectomy from the usual posterior approach. It has been claimed by some surgeons that osseous union will be secured in patients after thorough removal of the disk through the posterior approach, although no conclusive evidence has been presented to establish it as a fact.
In order to study the results of a resection of the disk through the posterior approach, a series of experiments were performed on animals. The method employed consisted of exposing the spinous processes and the laminas of the lower lumbar vertebrae. Because of the small size of the laminas and the disk, it was necessary to remove the spinous processes