Laminectomy is a surgical procedure for treating spinal stenosis by relieving pressure on the spinal cord. The lamina of the vertebra is removed or trimmed to widen the spinal canal and create more space for the spinal nerves.

The first laminectomy was performed in 1887 by Dr. Victor Alexander Haden Horsley, a professor of surgery at the University College London.

A common type of laminectomy is performed to permit the removal or reshaping of a spinal disc as part of a lumbar discectomy. This is a treatment for a herniated disc, bulging or degenerated disc.