A new study published in Spine examines lateral lumbar interbody fusion in ambulatory surgery centers.
The study authors examined medical records for 70 consecutive patients with prospective data collection in a retrospective review. There were 40 inpatients and 30 outpatients examined in the study. The researchers were looking for patient selection criteria, with the average BMI at 29.6 and the average level operated on at L3-L4 for both groups.
The researchers found:
1. Most of the inpatients reported Oswestry Disability Index scores growing from 48.5±3 to 55.5±2.
2. The outpatient ODI increased from 45.2±5.1 to 39.1±4.6.
3. There wasn't a statistically significant difference in visual analog scores between the two groups. The improvement in outpatient preoperative VAS scores was significant, however, ranging from preoperatively 7.3±0.5 to postoperatively 4.1±5.
4. Patients who had outpatient lateral lumbar interbody fusion reported significant improvement in ODI when compared with the inpatient setting.
5. All patients achieved fusion and there wasn't evidence of implant failure or subsidence. The complications in both settings were transient.
"We conclude that outpatient LLIF improves patients' outcomes with similar safety profile as the hospital setting," concluded the study authors.