title: Low back pain. The role of spine fusion.
abstract: The major objectives of spinal surgery are to relieve pain, improve function, and correct deformity. The surgical strategies to meet these objectives are decompression of neural elements or surgical stabilization by arthrodesis. This article analyzes spinal fusion from the perspective of indications, the broad principles of surgical technique, the results that can be obtained, and the complications of the procedure.
authors.affiliation: McClure Musculoskeletal Research Center, Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation, University of Vermont, Burlington.
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Frymoyer
mesh_terms: D001416:Back Pain / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D016025:Bone Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery; D009460:Neurologic Examination; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D013123:Spinal Fusion / Q000379:methods*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed