Early Failures After Lumbar Discectomy Surgery: An Analysis of 62 690 Patients

Impact of Gender on Peri-Operative Characteristics and Outcomes of Lumbar Spine Surgery: A Current Concepts Review

The success of spine surgery is variable among patients. Finding reliable predictors of successful outcomes will not only maximize patient benefit, but also increase the cost effectiveness of surgery. Recent research has demonstrated the importance of patient specific factors in predicting patient outcomes, including gender. While many studies show that female patients present with worse pain and function preoperatively, there is conflicting data on whether male and female patients reap the same benefits from lumbar spine surgery. In this manuscript we review the current research on gender and sex differences in preoperative characteristics and post-operative outcomes and comment on the need for more studies to better elucidate the mechanism driving the conflicting evidence.

Clinical outcomes and complications after biportal endoscopic spine surgery: a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of 3673 cases

PURPOSE

Current literature suggests that biportal spinal endoscopy is safe and effective in treating lumbar spine pathology such as lumbar disc herniation, lumbar stenosis, and degenerative spondylolisthesis. No prior study has investigated the postoperative outcomes or complication profile of the technique as a whole. This study serves as the first comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of biportal spinal endoscopy in the lumbar spine.

METHODS

A PubMed literature search provided over 100 studies. 42 papers were reviewed and 3673 cases were identified with average follow-up time of 12.5 months. Preoperative diagnoses consisted of acute disc herniation (1098), lumbar stenosis (2432), and degenerative spondylolisthesis (229). Demographics, operative details, complications, and perioperative outcome and satisfaction scores were analyzed.

RESULTS

Average age was 61.32 years, 48% male. 2402 decompressions, 1056 discectomies, and 261 transforaminal lumbar Interbody fusions (TLIFs) were performed. Surgery was performed on 4376 lumbar levels, with L4-5 being most common(61.3%). 290 total complications occurred, 2.23% durotomies, 1.29% inadequate decompressions, 3.79% epidural hematomas, and < 1% transient nerve root injuries, infections, and iatrogenic instability. Significant improvement in VAS-Back, VAS-Leg, ODI, and Macnab Scores were seen across the cohort.

CONCLUSION

Biportal spinal endoscopy is a novel method to address pathology in the lumbar spine with direct visualization through an endoscopic approach. Complications are comparable to previously published rates. Clinical outcomes demonstrate effectiveness. Prospective studies are required to assess the efficacy of the technique as compared to traditional techniques. This study demonstrates that the technique can be successful in the lumbar spine.

Risk Factors for 30-day Unplanned Readmission following Surgery for Lumbar Degenerative Diseases: A Systematic Review

STUDY DESIGN

Systematic review.

OBJECTIVES

Surgical procedures for lumbar degenerative diseases (LDD), which have emerged in the 21-century, are commonly practiced worldwide. Regarding financial burdens and health costs, readmissions within 30days following surgery are inconvenient. We performed a systematic review to integrate real-world evidence and report the current risk factors associated with 30-day readmission following surgery for LDD.

METHODS

The Cochrane Library, Embase, and Medline electronic databases were searched from inception to April 2022 to identify relevant studies reporting risk factors for 30-day readmission following surgery for LDD.

RESULTS

Thirty-six studies were included in the review. Potential risk factors were identified in the included studies that reported multivariate analysis results, including age, race, obesity, higher American Society of Anesthesiologists score, anemia, bleeding disorder, chronic pulmonary disease, heart failure, dependent status, depression, diabetes, frailty, malnutrition, chronic steroid use, surgeries with anterior approach, multilevel spinal surgeries, perioperative transfusion, presence of postoperative complications, prolonged operative time, and prolonged length of stay.

CONCLUSIONS

There are several potential perioperative risk factors associated with unplanned readmission following surgery for LDD. Preoperatively identifying patients that are at increased risk of readmission is critical for achieving the best possible outcomes.

Sex and gender determinants following spinal fusion surgery: A systematic review of clinical data

In the last decade, numerous studies analyzed and described the surgical outcomes in male and female patients submitted to orthopedic surgery. Although this, the impact of sex/gender on spinal fusion surgery clinical outcomes is still poorly defined. This review systematically maps and synthesizes the scientific literature on sex/gender differences in postoperative outcomes for patients undergoing spinal fusion surgery. The search was performed in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science in the last 22 years. Clinical studies evaluating potential sex/gender differences in postoperative outcomes and/or complications, as primary or secondary aim, were included and analyzed. Out of the 1,885 records screened, 47 studies were included. These studies comprised a total of 1,158,555 patients (51.31% female; 48.69% male). About 77% of the analyzed studies reported sex/gender-related differences in postoperative outcomes. Most studies treated patients for lumbar degenerative diseases and more than 55% of them reported a worse postoperative outcome in female patients in terms of pain, disability, health-related quality of life questionnaires, and complications. Differently, a significant heterogeneity across studies on patients treated for cervical and sacral degenerative diseases as well as for spinal deformity and traumatic spinal fracture prevented the understanding of specific sex/gender differences after spinal fusion surgery. Despite this, the present review highlighted those female patients treated for lumbar degenerative spine diseases could require more clinical awareness during postoperative care. The understanding of how sex/gender differences can really affect clinical outcomes after spinal fusion surgeries is mandatory for all spinal pathological conditions to drive clinical research toward oriented and personalized protocols.