Under general anesthesia and through a miniopen approach, the surgeon makes a small incision, usually on the left side of the lower abdomen, to expose the front part of the spine by going around the back of the abdominal cavity along the back wall without having to go through the abdominal cavity or cut through any of the back muscles. After disc material is removed from the front of the spine, a synthetic cage with bone graft and screws are inserted into the empty disc space and bone to support, stabilize and create lumbar fusion, and at the same time restoring disc height and spinal alignment into its natural lumbar curvature. Surgery usually takes about 2 to 3 hours to perform for a one or two-level procedure.