Axial lumbar interbody fusion: a 6-year single-center experience

Axial lumbar interbody fusion: a 6-year single-center experience

Blog Article

Dick J Zeilstra,1 Larry E Miller,2,3 Jon E Block3 1Bergman Clinics, Naarden and NedSpine, Ede, The Netherlands; 2Miller Scientific Consulting, Inc, Arden, NC, USA; 3The Jon Block Group, San Francisco, CA, USA Introduction: The aim of this study is to report our BLOCK 6-year single-center experience with L5–S1 axial lumbar interbody fusion (AxiaLIF).Methods: A total of 131 patients with symptomatic degenerative disc disease refractory to nonsurgical treatment were treated with AxiaLIF at L5–S1, and were followed for a minimum of 1 year (mean: 21 months).Main outcomes included back and leg pain severity, Oswestry Disability Index score, working status, analgesic medication use, patient satisfaction, and complications.Computed tomography was used to determine postoperative fusion status.

Results: No intraoperative complications, including vascular, neural, urologic, or bowel injuries, were reported.Back and leg pain severity decreased by 51% and 42%, respectively, during the follow-up period (both P < 0.001).Back function scores improved 50% compared to baseline.

Clinical success, defined as improvement ≥30%, was 67% for back pain severity, 65% for leg pain severity, and 71% for back function.The employment rate increased from 47% before surgery to 64% at final follow-up (P < 0.001).Less than one in four patients regularly used analgesic medications postsurgery.

Patient satisfaction with the AxiaLIF procedure was 83%.The fusion rate was 87.8% at final follow-up.During follow-up, 17 (13.

0%) patients underwent 18 reoperations on the lumbar spine, including pedicle screw fixation (n = 10), total disc replacement of an uninvolved level (n = 3), facet screw fixation (n = 3), facet screw removal (n = 1), and interbody fusion at L4–L5 (n = 1).Eight (6.1%) reoperations were at the index level.Conclusion: KIT Single-level AxiaLIF is a safe and effective means to achieve lumbosacral fusion in patients with symptomatic degenerative disc disease.

Keywords: AxiaLIF, interbody, fusion, lumbosacral, minimally invasive, presacral.