Background: Chronic low back pain causes socioeconomic burdens. Whether lumbar fusion is more effective than nonsurgical treatment of discogenic low back pain (DLBP) is controversial. Several randomized controlled trials that compared conservative treatment and fusion surgery had conflicting conclusions.

Objective: To compare between the effectiveness of lumbar fusion and nonsurgical intervention in patients with chronic low back pain caused by disc degeneration.

Methods: PubMed, the Cochrane Library, EMBASE, the Science Citation Index, Chinese Biomedical Literature Database, and references of relevant papers published from 1990 to 2013 were searched. Related data matching standards established for this research were extracted and statistically analyzed by using the RevMan (5.2) software.

Results: Meta-analysis of 6 randomized controlled trials with a total of 889 patients revealed no difference in Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) score for DLBP between the fusion surgery and nonsurgical groups (mean difference, 1.94; 95% confidence interval [CI], -6.02 to 2.14). Postsurgical complication rate significantly differed between the 2 groups (risk ratio, 22.11; 95% CI, 55.99-81.60).

Conclusions: Fusion surgery was not superior to nonsurgical treatment in terms of changes in ODI scores for DLBP. Fusion surgery resulted in surgical complications. Longer follow-up observation is necessary regarding condition-specific disability, pain, and life satisfaction.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.3233/BMR-140571DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

fusion surgery
20
low pain
16
chronic low
12
meta-analysis randomized
8
treatment discogenic
8
lumbar fusion
8
nonsurgical treatment
8
randomized controlled
8
controlled trials
8
dlbp fusion
8

Similar Publications

Purpose: An atypical presentation of cervical spondylopathy (CS), trigeminal neuralgia (TN) is attributable to the extension of trigeminal nuclei into the spinal cord and is frequently overlooked, leading to limited discussion with patients regarding potential anterior cervical surgery. Our systematic review assesses the effectiveness of cervical surgery for concurrent trigeminal neuralgia in cases of cervical spondylopathy.

Methods: A systematic review exploring cases of trigeminal neuralgia related to cervical spondylopathy was conducted searching on PubMed, Scopus and Embase databases for article in English.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Traumatic burst fractures of the atlas occur with axial loading of the cervical spine. Many of these injuries can be treated by nonsurgical management with external orthosis; however, cases with transverse ligament disruption or significant C1 lateral mass displacement require internal reduction and fixation. In patients with poor bone quality in the setting of osteoporosis or chronic illness, atlanto-axial fixation and reduction of the fracture can be a challenge, necessitating extension of fusion to the occiput, which significantly limits the range of motion.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study aims to compare the sinking and shifting of an enhanced escape-proof intervertebral fusion device with a traditional TLIF intervertebral fusion device.Five specimens each of the improved escape-resistant intervertebral cage and the traditional TLIF cage were selected. Four types of mechanical tests were conducted on each cage, Furthermore, a blade-cutting torque test was performed on the escape-resistant cage, with the recording of load-displacement curves and mechanical values.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!