A hybrid surgical approach for treating lumbar spondylolisthesis and multilevel spinal stenosis was associated with a 9.1% reoperation rate in a retrospective case series published June 12 in the Journal of Neurosurgery.
The study evaluated 33 patients who underwent a “1 1/2” minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion procedure between January 2016 and February 2023. The technique combines fusion at an unstable spinal segment with decompression alone at an adjacent stenotic level to preserve motion and avoid multilevel fusion.
With a median follow-up of 26 months, fusion was achieved in 96.2% of patients. Three patients required reoperation, including two who later underwent fusion at the previously decompressed level and one who required fusion at the index level.
Researchers reported a perioperative complication rate of 12.1% and no neurological complications.
The study, led by Roger Härtl, MD, a neurosurgeon and director of neurosurgery spine for New York City-based Weill Cornell Medicine and co-director for New York Presbyterian Och Spine and colleagues, concluded that the hybrid approach may offer a less invasive alternative to traditional multilevel fusion while limiting the need for future fusion extension. Larger studies are needed to further evaluate long-term outcomes, according to the authors.
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