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Surgery lets elderly go for a walk
CHARLOTTE, N.C.-Major surgery may mean major improvement for older patients with degenerative lumbar stenosis.
A study by the Florida Spine Institute in Clearwater showed that 196 of 223 patients, whose mean age was 76, significantly improved their ability to walk after a laminectomy, with or without instrumented fusion.
At 24 months, walking distance had risen a mean 36-fold. Of the 174 patients who’d gotten narcotic drugs preop, only 69 still did, says Dr. Johnny Benjamin Jr., now in Vero Beach.
Seven patients required more surgery for recurrent stenosis or other abnormalities, and 18 had major complications, including MI, stroke, and deep infection, he told the Southern Medical Association meeting here. Increasing age did not affect outcome or complication rate.
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