Approximately, 21,393 adults underwent spinal fusion in 2014, a 67.2 percent increase from the 12,794 spinal fusion patients in 2004, according to a report from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council.
Here are five insights on spinal fusions:
1. Around 3.3 percent of patients who underwent spinal fusion experienced a surgical complication during the hospitalization.
2. Wound complications such as post-operative infection, accumulation of fluid and accidental punctures or tears of the membrane covering the spinal cord were the top reason for in-hospital complications.
3. Nearly 2.3 percent of patients who underwent spinal fusion were readmitted to an acute-care hospital for a surgical complication within 30 days or 90 days of discharge.
4. Around 5.4 percent were readmitted to an acute-care hospital for an unplanned reason within 30 days of discharge.
5. Surgical complications were the most common reason for unplanned readmissions, followed by heart-related reasons, bloodstream infections and blood clot in the lung.