Safety and Efficacy of Minimally Invasive Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody Fusion Combined with Gelatin Sponge Impregnated with Dexamethasone and No Drainage Tube after Surgery in the Treatment of Lumbar Degenerative Disease

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the present study was to use a gelatin sponge impregnated with dexamethasone, combined with minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MIS‐TLIF) and no drainage tube after the operation for early postoperative recurrence of root pain caused by edema. METHODS: A prospective case series study was designed. From September 2015 to January 2018, eligible patients diagnosed with lumbar degenerative disease underwent MIS‐TLIF combined with a gelatin sponge impregnated with dexamethasone and no drainage tube after surgery. The short‐term clinical data were collected, such as visual analog scale (VAS) scores for low back pain and leg pain preoperatively and on postoperative days (POD) 1–10, time bedridden postoperatively, and length of hospital stay postoperatively. Long‐term indicators include the Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score, the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) score, and the 36‐Item Short‐Form Health Survey (SF‐36) score, evaluated preoperatively and 1 week, 3 months, and more than 1 year postoperatively. RESULTS: Complete clinical data was obtained for 139 patients. All patients were followed up for more than 12 months (13.7 ± 3.3 months). The average bedridden period was 1.5 ± 0.4 days and hospital stays were 2.7 ± 0.9 days. The VAS score of leg and back pain on POD 1–10 were all decreased compared with preoperation (all P < 0.0001). At the last follow up, the VAS scores for back pain and leg pain (0.69 ± 0.47; 1.02 ± 0.55) and the ODI score (11.1 ± 3.5) decreased (all P < 0.0001), and the JOA score (27.1 ± 3.2) and the SF‐36 (physical component summary, 50.5 ± 7.3; mental component summary, 49.4 ± 8.9) increased (all P < 0.0001) compared with preoperative values. Patients' early and long‐term levels of satisfaction postoperatively were 92.8% and 97.8%, respectively. At POD 7 and the last follow‐up, the improvement rate of the JOA score, respectively, was 41.8% ± 10.6% and 87.7% ± 8.2%, and clinical effects assessed as significantly effective according to the improvement rate of the JOA score was 16.5% and 66.9%, respectively. There were 2 (1.4%) cases with complications, including 1 (0.7%) case of wound infection and 1 (0.7%) case of deep vein thrombosis. There were no device‐related complications or neurological injuries. CONCLUSION: Use of a gelatin sponge impregnated with dexamethasone combined with MIS‐TLIF and no drainage tube after the operation, compared with previous studies, appears to be safe and feasible to reduce recurrent back pain and leg pain after decompression in the treatment of lumbar degenerative disease.