Age-related Differences in Clinical Outcomes of Lumbar Discectomy

INTRODUCTION: Lumbar discectomy is a common and effective treatment for symptomatic disk herniation. It has been suggested that lumbar discectomy in older patients may result in poorer clinical outcomes and lesser satisfaction. The purpose of this study was to assess age-related difference in patient reported outcomes of patients undergoing lumbar discectomy for chronic low back and radicular pain. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Patients with chronic lumbar radiculopathy without neurological deficit underwent non-urgent single level lumbar discectomy in our institution between 2014 and 2017. Pain level (using VAS score), Oswestry Disability Index, and SF-12 scores were retrospectively reviewed and compared between younger patients (<60 years, group 1) and older patients (>60 years, group 2). RESULTS: Seventy-three patients, aged between 34–76 years participated in this study. VAS, ODI, and SF-12 scores improved significantly after the surgery for each group (P < .01). When comparing between the groups, no significant differences in the outcomes measured were found after the surgery in both early post-operative follow-up and late post-operative follow-up (P > .05). DISCUSSION: Elderly patients undergoing lumbar discectomy report a significant reduction in VAS, ODI, and SF-12 scores justifying the procedure. CONCLUSION: Lumbar discectomy improved function and decreased pain level to similar extent in both younger and older patients suffering from radicular symptoms related to lumbar disc herniation.