Abstract
Background:
Following lumbar spine surgery patients with a high BMI appear to have increased post-operative complications including surgical site infections (SSI), urinary complications, increased anaesthetic/operative time and a greater need for post-operative blood transfusion. There is no current evidence, however, analysing the effect of BMI on functional outcome.
Purpose:
We aimed to analyse the effect of BMI on functional outcome following lumbar spine surgery.
Study Design:
Retrospective Cohort Study
Patient Sample:
131
Outcome Measures:
Outcome measures included mean post-operative Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) at six and twelve months, the incidence of SSI, mean operative time and the requirement for post-operative blood transfusion.
Methods:
Patients that underwent lumbar spinal surgery between September 2010 and November 2013 were identified retrospectively and categorised into discectomy, decompression, fusion and revision is created. A BMI threshold of 30 was used to group patients as non-obese or obese. Univariate analysis was used to compare the effect of BMI on the above outcome measures.
Results:
Post-operative complication rates were higher in the obese group in each category. However, there was no significant difference in the post-operative ODI at six ad twelve months post-operatively.
Conclusions:
Increased BMI is related to increased post-operative complications but is not associated with a poorer functional outcome in the short to mid-term.
