European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society
-
To quantify the correlation between patients' psychopathological predisposition, disability and health-related quality of life (QOL) after surgery for degenerative lumbar spine disease. ⋯ Despite exhibiting pronounced psychological distress preoperatively, patients may significantly benefit from surgery with an outcome equal to psychologically healthy patients after 12 months. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.
-
Recurrent lumbar disc herniation is the most common complication after discectomy. Due to the altered anatomy with the presence of scar tissue, the surgical revision of already operated patients could be a surgical challenge. ⋯ There is no clear guideline for the surgical treatment of recurrent disc herniations. In most cases, a pure re-discectomy is sufficient and can be performed safely and effectively with the help of a microscope. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.
-
Surgical treatment failures or strategies for the reoperation of residual thoracic disc herniations are sparsely discussed. We investigated factors that led to incomplete disc removal and recommend reoperation strategies. ⋯ Our data suggest that pure dorsal decompression provides a short relief of the symptoms caused by spinal cord compression. Progressive myelopathy (probably due to mechanical and vascular deficits) and scar formation may cause worsening of symptoms. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.
-
Unnecessarily long hospital stays are costly and inefficient. Studies have shown that the length of hospital stay (LOS) for spine surgical procedures is influenced by various disease-related or medical factors, but few have examined the role of socio-demographic/socio-economic (SDE) factors. ⋯ Patients of advanced age and female gender are at increased risk of longer hospital stay after surgery for degenerative spinal disorders. Further studies should seek to understand the reasoning behind the gender disparity, in order to minimise potentially unnecessary costs of prolonged LOS. Targeted preoperative discharge planning may improve the utilisation of hospital resources. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.
-
The purpose of this study is to compare clinical patient-reported outcomes and radiographic sagittal parameters between obese and non-obese patients following open posterior lumbar spine fusion (PLSF). ⋯ Obese patients had significantly more comorbidities and longer operative time compared to non-obese patients. However, sagittal parameters, patient-reported outcomes, inpatient complications, length of hospital stay, and reoperations were similar between groups. Given these findings, open PLSF can be considered safe and effective in obese patients after thorough consideration of related comorbidities. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.