• Chang Kyu Lee, Sun Kyu Choi, Seong Bae An, Yoon Ha, Seung-Hwan Yoon, Insoo Kim, and Keung Nyun Kim.
• Department of Neurosurgery, Keimyung University Dongsan Medical Center, Daegu, South Korea; Department of Neurosurgery, Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
• World Neurosurg. 2021 May 1; 149: e360-e368.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the relationship between prevalence of osteoporosis and risk factors, medical costs, reoperation, and readmission in patients after spine surgery.MethodsPatients >50 years old with thoracic or lumbar spine diseases who underwent spine surgery between 2005 and 2008 were selected from the Korean National Health Insurance Service databases for analysis. There were 147,676 patients selected, who were divided into 2 groups (osteoporosis and non-osteoporosis) and followed for 8 years. Multiple logistic regressions were performed to examine the effect of osteoporosis following spine surgery.ResultsPatients with osteoporosis showed significant increases in readmission rates (odds ratio = 1.26, P < 0.001). Osteoporosis was found to be significantly associated with longer hospital stays and increased medical costs regardless of the cause of spine disease. For readmission, there was a 62-day difference in hospitalization time and U.S. dollars $2040 difference in medical costs between the osteoporosis group and non-osteoporosis group. Total medical costs of the osteoporosis group were about U.S. dollars $310 million more than total medical costs of the non-osteoporosis group. Osteoporosis increased the risk of reoperation in fusion surgery, particularly in the first 3 months postoperatively (odds ratio = 1.34, P < 0.001).ConclusionsOsteoporosis was significantly associated with higher readmission rates, longer hospitalization, and greater medical costs during the 8-year follow-up. It also increased the risk of reoperation in fusion surgery. Proper management of osteoporosis is essential before spine surgery, particularly fusion surgery, to help reduce patients' socioeconomic burden and produce more satisfactory surgical outcomes.Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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