MODEL RELEASED. Slipped disc microendoscopy surgery. Surgeon preparing to perform an operation on a herniated (slipped) intervertebral disc using a microendoscopic discectomy (MED) procedure. A slipped disc is where an intervertebral disc between two of the vertebrae in the spinal column has ruptured, usually putting painful pressure on the nearby nerves. Microendoscopy uses small endoscopic tools and cameras to perform delicate and minimally invasive surgery using endoscopes inserted through small openings. Photographed at Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands.