title: Minimum 25-year outcome and functional assessment of lumbar discectomy.
abstract: METHODS
  A retrospective, follow-up cohort study.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the 25-year (or longer) outcome of discectomy for lumbar disc herniation by validated instruments.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  A comprehensive patient-oriented evaluation should include measurements of pain and disability along with a reliable evaluation of the general health status. There is a paucity of data from validated measuring instruments on the very long-term outcome of lumbar discectomy.
  
  
  METHODS
  We conducted a follow-up study of 201 patients an average of 27.8 years (range 25-32) after lumbar discectomy. The patient-oriented assessment included a Short Form-36 Health Survey questionnaire, Oswestry Disability Index, Cumulative Illness Rating Scale, and a study specific questionnaire dealing with daily life activities and satisfaction with the surgery.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The Short Form-36 Health Survey physical scales and summary scores were similar to the normative values for healthy subjects and were better than the scores of patients with untreated sciatica with respect to reported pain. The mean Oswestry disability score was 17.5. Satisfaction with surgery was expressed by 181 of 201 patients (90%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients who had undergone lumbar discectomy a minimum of 25 years earlier have a satisfactory self-reported health-related quality of life and less pain than nonsurgically treated subjects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, Federico II University, Naples, Italy. maricond@unina.it
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mariconda
authors.forename: Olimpio
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Galasso
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Secondulfo
authors.forename: Giuseppe Della
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Rotonda
authors.forename: Carlo
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Milano
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D017586:Diskectomy / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data* / Q000639:trends*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011788:Quality of Life / Q000523:psychology; D020127:Recovery of Function / Q000502:physiology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome