Outcomes of patients following surgical treatment for lumbar degenerative spine conditions in Iraq
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51699/ijhsms.v2i11.2870Keywords:
Lumbar degenerative conditions, Lumbar decompression surgery, Lumbar fusion surgeryAbstract
Background: In general, this study demonstrated the association between the surgical treatment of lumbar degenerative conditions in Iraqi patients and its effect on postoperative morbidity.
Aim: This study was aimed to assess outcomes of surgical treatment for Iraqi patients’ lumbar degenerative spine.
Patients and methods: Databases were collected related to 105 patients from different hospitals in Iraq between 15th July 2022 to 9th March 2023. A statistical analysis was performed on the pre-and post-operative surgical outcomes relating to both surgeries, where this was achieved by measuring factors such as pain, disability, and walking ability using the Oswestry Disability Index and visual analogue scale, alongside walking ability in meters. The surgical outcome data was analyzed and formulated using SPSS, version 22.0.
Results: The study revealed that patients who underwent lumbar decompression surgery exhibited a greater improvement rate in their leg and back pain than those who underwent lumbar fusion surgery. Specifically, the back pain score was (3.1 ± 1.9) and the leg pain score was (3.5 ± 1.5) for the decompression group, resulting in a positive effect on their overall quality of life, which was scored at (82.61 ± 6.22).
In contrast, patients who underwent lumbar fusion surgery recorded a lower score of (66.81 ± 9.8). The Oswestry Disability Index indicated an increase in walking ability with scores of (18.28 ± 21.67) for patients who received lumbar decompression surgery and (35.15 ± 24.56) for those who underwent lumbar fusion surgery.
Conclusion: Our paper discovered a significant improvement in postoperative results for patients who underwent lumbar decompression surgery compared to those who had lumbar fusion surgery in terms of pain levels, disability, and walking ability. Lumbar decompression surgery had a post-operative complication rate of seven patients, with infections and blood clots being the most prevalent.
