[Analysis of unfavorable postoperative outcomes in patients with lumbosacral junction anomalies]. / Analiz neudovletvoritel'nykh rezul'tatov khirurgicheskogo lecheniya patsientov s anomaliyami poyasnichno-kresttsovogo perekhoda pozvonochnika.

BACKGROUND: The absence of a unified diagnostic approach and heterogeneous treatment strategies in patients with lumbosacral transitional vertebra contribute to registration of contradictory data on postoperative outcomes in these patients. OBJECTIVE: A retrospective analysis of postoperative outcomes in patients with degenerative lumbar spine diseases associated with lumbosacral junction anomalies and causes of unfavorable results. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Lumbosacral transitional vertebra was preoperatively verified and classified according to Castellvi A.E. in 352 cases between 2007 and 2017. Full-time examination, phone and e-mail survey covered 314 (89.2%) patients throughout 5.2-year follow-up period. There were unfavorable clinical outcomes in 42 cases. We analyzed the causes of these results and relationship of surgical strategy with the type of lumbosacral junction anomaly. RESULTS: Lumbosacral transitional vertebra Castellvi type IIA (30.9%) and IIIA (34.9%) prevailed. Unfavorable outcomes occurred in 7 cases after percutaneous interventions, in 12 patients after decompression surgery and in 23 patients after decompression and stabilization procedures. In all cases (n=42), redo surgery was performed: rigid fixation or extension of stabilization system in 16 cases, additional intracanal decompression in 10 patients, foraminal/extraforaminal decompression in 8 patients. Seven patients underwent repeated laser denervation. Of these, 5 patients underwent dorsal decompression without discectomy due to ineffective denervation. Correlation analysis showed the relationship between unfavorable outcomes after percutaneous procedures with LV transverse process dysplasia and sacralization, decompressive interventions with additional articular joints and lumbarization, decompression/stabilization procedures with LV transverse process dysplasia and sacralization. CONCLUSION: Unfavorable outcomes occurred after percutaneous interventions for anomaly type IB and IIIB, decompressive procedures for anomaly type IIA, IIB and IV, decompression/ stabilization procedures for types IA and IIIA. It is the first report devoted to analysis of relationships between unsatisfactory postoperative outcomes, surgical technique and type of lumbosacral dysgenesis.

[Results of the study of functional recovery of professional athletes after minimally invasive lumbar fusion]. / Rezul'taty provedeniya minimal'no-invazivnogo poyasnichnogo spondilodeza u professional'nykh sportsmenov.

OBJECTIVE: To conduct a comprehensive clinical-neurological assessment and to study the results of functional recovery of professional athletes after minimally invasive lumbar interbody fusion. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The retrospective study included 27 patients-professional athletes who were operated on using minimally invasive decompression and stabilization techniques in the period 2010 to 2019. Clinical-neurological effectiveness was assessed when returning to previous sports activity was 14 (9; 17) weeks and 4 (3; 5) years after surgery. RESULTS: The follow-up showed a significant improvement in clinical and neurological parameters: persistent elimination of radicular and muscular-skeletal symptoms, a decrease in the level of pain according to a visual analogue scale in the lumbar spine from 68 (61; 85) mm to 3 (2; 11) mm (p=0.002) and in the lower extremities from 84 (78; 91) mm to 1 (0; 3) mm (p=0.001), change in the physical component of health from 26.18 (23.58; 28.37) to 49.82 (49.03; 53.04) (p=0.002) and the psychological component of health from 27.87 (26.22; 29.29) to 52.18 (49.12; 55.66) (p=0.001), significant improvement in the perception of physical activity according to the Borg RPE Scale from 17 (16; 18) points to 9 (8; 9) (p<0.001). In one case (3.7%), the patient did not return to his previous sports career. CONCLUSION: The use of minimally invasive rigid stabilization in the overwhelming majority of professional athletes made it possible in the shortest possible time to achieve regression of neurological symptoms, reduce pain, improve the quality of life, restore the functional state and return to previous sports activities.

Accelerated Recovery Program for Patients with Polysegmental Degenerative Lumbar Spine Disease.

The aim of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of the accelerated recovery program for patients with polysegmental degenerative diseases of the lumbar spine. Materials and Methods: This prospective study included 53 patients who underwent two-level transforaminal interbody fusion in the LII-SI segments. Two groups were identified: in group 1 (n=24), operations were performed using the accelerated recovery program; in group 2 (n=29), open rigid stabilization was used under traditional intravenous anesthesia. The end-point parameters were the number of bed-days spent in the hospital after the operation, the number of perioperative surgical complications and adverse effects of anesthesia, and the number of re-hospitalizations within 90 days. We also recorded the time of patient activation, the level of pain around the operated zone (using a visual analogue scale), and the quality of life in the long-term postoperative period (median 18 months); the latter was assessed using the SF-36 questionnaire (physical and psychological components of health). Results: Patients under the accelerated recovery program were found to have a shorter duration of surgery and anesthesia, less blood loss, lower amounts of injected opioids, faster verticalization, and a reduced period of inpatient treatment (p<0.05 for all parameters). As compared to group 2, patients in group 1 had a lower level of pain in the surgery zone (p<0.05), better long-term indicators of the physical and psychological components of health (p<0.05), a lower number of anesthesia-associated adverse events (p<0.05), and a lower rate of postoperative complications (p<0.05). During the 90-day postoperative observation, four patients of group 2 (13.8%) were urgently referred to a medical institution for additional medical care. Conclusion: The accelerated recovery program for two-level interbody fusion showed its safety and high clinical efficiency in the treatment of patients with polysegmental degenerative diseases of the lumbar spine. The program can be used in any center for spine surgery where effective interaction between polyvalent medical and nursing teams is maintained.

[A comparative analysis of clinical efficiency of laser and radiofrequency denervation in patients with primary trigeminal neuralgia]. / Sravnitel'nyi analiz klinicheskoi effektivnosti primeneniya lazernoi i radiochastotnoi denervatsii u patsientov s pervichnoi nevralgiei troinichnogo nerva.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the clinical efficacy of laser and radiofrequency denervation in patients with primary trigeminal neuralgia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study included 50 patients with primary trigeminal neuralgia who were operated on by laser (group I, n=25) or radiofrequency denervation (group II, n=25) in the period from 2018 to 2019. To assess the clinical efficacy, we analyzed the dynamics of the pain syndrome level according to the scale of facial pain and the quality of life according to the Short Form Medical Outcomes Study (SF-36), as well as patient satisfaction with the operation according to the Macnab scale, the presence of postoperative surgical complications and adverse effects of anesthesia. RESULTS: In the postoperative period, according to the scale of facial pain, a decrease in its intensity was noted in both study groups (p<0.001). Comparative analysis showed a comparable level of pain in the early postoperative period: at discharge (p=0.43) and 6 months after surgery (p=0.07). At the same time, after 12 months, lower scores on the scale of facial pain were noted in patients of group I (p=0.02). According to SF-36, a significant improvement in the physical and psychological components of health was determined in group I (p<0.001) and group II (p<0.05). Comparison of SF-36 scores in the long-term postoperative period revealed the best indicators in group I (p=0.02 and p=0.01, respectively). Comparative analysis verified a greater subjective satisfaction with the operation in group I, compared with group II (p<0.001). A comparable number of adverse effects of anesthesia was determined in both groups. Comparative analysis revealed a significantly greater number of postoperative surgical complications in group II (p=0.0017). CONCLUSION: Laser denervation and radiofrequency denervation are highly effective methods of minimally invasive treatment of primary trigeminal neuralgia.