Percutaneous Laser Photocoagulation of Osteoid Osteomas

Osteoid osteoma is a painful benign bone tumor. The curative treatment of this tumor consists of complete surgical or percutaneous excision of the nidus with immediate and dramatic relief of symptoms. Interstitial laser photocoagulation (ILP) is a low-invasive percutaneous technique of thermal destruction (coagulation) of deep-seated tumors elsewhere in the body, using low-power laser energy. The aim of ILP is the local destruction of osteoid osteoma without bone weakening. Twenty-two patients with osteoid osteoma were treated with percutaneous ILP of the nidus under computed tomography guidance. The laser energy was provided by a high-power semiconductor diode laser (805 nm) with a 400-&mgr;m optical fiber. Complete pain relief was obtained in 21 patients. Percutaneous ILP of osteoid osteoma seems to be a promising, simple, precise, and minimally invasive technique as an alternative to traditional surgical and percutaneous ablations.