Complications of Lumbar Disc Herniation Following Full-endoscopic Interlaminar Lumbar Discectomy: A Large, Single-Center, Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND: The new surgical procedure of full-endoscopic interlaminar lumbar discectomy (FILD) has achieved favorable effects in the treatment of lumbar disc herniation (LDH). Along with the wide range of applications of FILD, a series of complications related to the operation has gradually emerged. OBJECTIVE: To describe the types, incidences, and characteristics of complications following FILD and to explore preventative and treatment measures. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective, observational study. SETTING: A spine center affiliated with a large general hospital. METHOD: In total, 479 patients with LDH underwent FILDs that were performed by a single experienced spine surgeon between January 2010 and April 2013. Data concerning the complications were recorded. RESULTS: All 479 cases successfully underwent the procedure. A total of 482 procedures were completed. The mean follow-up time was 44.3 months with a range of 24 to 60 months. The average patient age was 47.8 years with a range of 16 to 76 years. Twenty-nine (6.0%) related complications emerged, including 3 cases (0.6%) of incomplete decompression in which the symptoms gradually decreased following 3 - 6 weeks of conservative treatment, 2 cases (0.4%) of nerve root injury in which the patients recovered well following 1 - 3 months of neurotrophic drug and functional exercise treatment, 15 cases (3.1%) of paresthesia that gradually improved following 1 - 8 weeks of rehabilitation exercises and treatment with mecobalamin and pregabalin, and 9 cases of recurrent herniation (1.9%). The latter condition was controlled in 4 cases with a conservative method, and 5 of these cases underwent reoperations that included 3 traditional open surgeries and 2 FILDs. Furthermore, the complication rate for the first 100 cases was 18%. This rate decreased to 2.9% for cases 101 - 479. The incidence of L4-5 herniation (8.2%) was significantly greater than that of L5-S1 (4.5%). LIMITATIONS: This is a retrospective study, and some bias exists due to the single-center study design. CONCLUSION: FILD is a surgical approach that has a low complication rate. Incomplete decompression, nerve root injury, paresthesia, and recurrent herniation were observed in our study. Some effective measures can prevent and reduce the incidence of the complications including strict indications for surgery, a thorough action plan, and a high level of surgical skill. Key words: Complication, lumbar disc herniation, lumbar discectomy, endoscopic, inter-laminar discectomy, minimally invasive spine surgery.

Prognostic role of the lymph node ratio in node positive colorectal cancer: a meta-analysis.

The lymph node ratio (LNR) (i.e. the number of metastatic lymph nodes divided by the number of totally resected lymph nodes) has recently emerged as an important prognostic factor in colorectal cancer (CRC). However, the tumor node metastasis (TNM) staging system for colorectal cancer does not consider it as a prognostic parameter. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to evaluate the prognostic role of the LNR in node positive CRC. A systematic search was performed in PubMed, Embase and the Cochrane Library for relevant studies up to November 2015. As a result, a total of 75,838 node positive patients in 33 studies were included in this meta-analysis. Higher LNR was significantly associated with shorter overall survival (OS) (HR = 1.91; 95% CI 1.71-2.14; P = 0.0000) and disease free survival (DFS) (HR = 2.75; 95% CI: 2.14-3.53; P = 0.0000). Subgroup analysis showed similar results. Based on these results, LNR was an independent predictor of survival in colorectal cancer patients and should be considered as a parameter in future oncologic staging systems.

Closed Suction Drainage Is Not Associated with Faster Recovery after Total Knee Arthroplasty: A Prospective Randomized Controlled Study of 80 Patients.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether closed suction drainage (CSD) is associated with early recovery of knee function in patients undergoing total knee arthroplasty (TKA). METHODS: Between January 2015 and September 2015, 80 consecutive patients were prospectively randomized into two groups: a CSD group (40 cases; average age, 66.9 ± 8.6 years; male, 8; female, 32) and a non-CSD group (40 cases; average age, 66.8 ± 10.1 years; male, 9; female, 31). Local inflammation outcomes (assessed by a visual analog scale [VAS], swelling and skin temperature), calculated total blood loss (CBL), hidden blood loss (HBL), blood transfusion requirements and hemoglobin concentrations were recorded. Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) knee scores, range of motion (ROM), limb swelling, tension vesicles, ecchymosis, time to regaining straight leg raising and duration of hospital stay were documented. All surgeries were performed by the same surgeon and followed up for 3 months. RESULTS: The peri-wound skin temperature and knee VAS pain scores were lower in the non-CSD group. Patients in the non-CSD group had significantly better knee ROM (P = 0.028). The time to regaining active straight leg raising was significantly shorter in the non-CSD groupN than in the CSD group (P = 0.014). In addition, patients in the non-CSD group had a shorter length of hospital stay (P = 0.004) than those in the CSD group, indicating earlier recovery of knee function. HBL was significantly less in the CSD group than the non-CSD group (P = 0.006) on postoperative day (POD) 5. However, CBL did not differ significantly between the two groups on POD5. There were no significant differences between two groups in all other assessed variables. CONCLUSION: In this randomized study, primary TKA without CSD was associated with faster recovery related to less local inflammation and better early knee function. Furthermore, use of a drain had no significant advantage with respect to other outcome measures and may have increased costs. Based on these data, CSD after primary TKA is not routinely indicated.