Fall of intradiscal pressure with laser ablation.

In an experimental system where intradiscal pressure could be measured before and after laser ablation, we found that there was a significant fall of intradiscal pressure after 1000 J of Nd:YAG laser energy was delivered to fresh cadaver discs. That this was not due to fenestration was demonstrated by control experiments using an identical system, but without turning on the laser. Here, there was no significant fall of intradiscal pressure.