Increased Rates of Septic Shock, Cardiac Arrest, and Mortality Associated With Chronic Steroid Use Following Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion for Cervical Stenosis.

Objective: Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is an established treatment modality for cervical spondylosis. Many patients are on immunosuppressant therapy in the management of various inflammatory spinal pathologies and other comorbid conditions. The impact of chronic steroid use on postoperative complications has not been examined in cervical fusion procedures. The objective of this study was to identify specific postoperative complications associated with steroid/immunosuppressant use following ACDF for cervical stenosis.

Methods: A multi-institutional surgical registry was queried to identify 5377 patients with ACDF diagnosed with cervical stenosis. Patients were stratified into cohorts with a history of steroid/immunosuppressant use for chronic conditions (n = 198, 3.3%) versus those who did not (n = 5179, 96.7%). Propensity-score matching without replacement was implemented to control for preoperative demographics and comorbidities. Pearson χ and Fischer exact tests were used in comparing the prevalence of demographics, comorbidities, and complication rates.

Results: Upon propensity matching, increased rates of pulmonary embolisms (0.51% vs 0.00%, = .025), cardiac arrest requiring resuscitation (1.01% vs 0.10%, = .020), septic shock (0.51% vs 0.00%, = .025), and mortality (1.52% vs 0.20%, = .009) in the postoperative 30-day period in patients on chronic steroid/immunosuppressant use were observed.

Conclusions: The results indicate that steroid use/immunosuppression in patients with ACDF has a higher associated rate of pulmonary embolisms, cardiac arrest, septic shock, and mortality. The risk of mortality and these other complications should be carefully considered prior to operative intervention. Future research may investigate steroid-tapering protocols that reduce the rate of infection and other postoperative complications in the subset of immunosuppressed ACDF patients.

Clinical Relevance: By elucidating the complication rates of ACDF patients on steroids for cervical stenosis, orthopedic surgeons can better stratify patients for risk of postoperative morbidity. Surgeons may have deeper risk-benefit discussions with these specific patients before they elect to have the operation.