Effects on health four years post surgical decompression in patients with lumbar stenosis

Surgery for spinal stenosis has been shown to be more effective than nonoperative treatment during 4 years post procedure, but longer-term data are less clear.  In Long-term Outcomes of Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: Eight-Year Results of the Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trial (SPORT),Jon D. Lurie , MD, MS et al,  surgical candidates from 13 centers in 11 US states with at least 12 weeks of symptoms and confirmatory imaging were enrolled in a randomized cohort or observational cohort. Treatment was standard, decompressive laminectomy versus standard nonoperative care. Primary outcomes were SF-36 (MOS 36-Item Short-Form Health Survey) Bodily Pain and Physical Function scales and the modified Oswestry Disability Index assessed at 6 weeks, 3 months, 6 months, and yearly up to 8 years.

Data were obtained for 55% of participants in the randomized group and 52% of participants in the observational group at the 8-year follow-up..  As-treated analyses in the randomized group showed that the early benefit t\ for surgery out to 4 years converged over time, with no signifi -cant treatment effect of surgery seen in years 6 to 8 for any of the primary outcomes.