A cordotomy is a surgical procedure that is used to relieve pain by cutting the nerves of the spinal cord. Cutting selected nerves disables pain-conducting tracts in the spinal cord, effectively blocking pain sensation as well as temperature perception.
The procedure is typically performed on patients with severe pain from cancer and other non-curable diseases.
A cordotomy may be performed by needle-puncture of the skin with fluoroscopic guidance and local anesthesia or as an open cordotomy which would require an additional laminectomy surgery to access the nerves of the spinal canal.
