Primary decompression does not compromise clinical outcomes in minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion patients, according to a study published in Spine.
Here are four things to know:
1. Study authors reviewed a prospectively-maintained surgical database of patients who underwent a primary or revision one-level MIS TLIF for degenerative spinal pathology between 2014 and 2016.
2. The analysis included 52 patients:
- 26 underwent primary MIS laminectomy and TLIF
- 26 underwent MIS TLIF with a revision lumbar decompression
3. Revision and primary MIS TLIF patients experienced similar improvements in patient-reported outcomes at all postoperative time points.
4. Study authors conclude patients should not be precluded from undergoing MIS TLIF based on the having undergone a past lumbar decompression.