title: Rehabilitation following surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis. A Cochrane review.
abstract: METHODS
  A systematic review of randomized controlled trials.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To determine the effects of active rehabilitation on functional outcome after lumbar spinal stenosis surgery when compared with "usual postoperative care."
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  Surgery rates for lumbar spinal stenosis have risen, yet outcomes remain suboptimal. Postoperative rehabilitation has been suggested as a tool to improve postoperative function but, to date, there is limited evidence to support its use.
  
  
  METHODS
  CENTRAL (The Cochrane Library), the Cochrane Back Review Group Trials Register, MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, and PEDro electronic databases were searched. Randomized controlled trials comparing the effectiveness of active rehabilitation with usual care in adults with lumbar spinal stenosis who had undergone primary spinal decompression surgery were included. Two authors independently selected studies, assessed the risk of bias, and extracted the data in line with the recommendations of the Cochrane Back Review Group. Study results were pooled in a meta-analysis when appropriate using functional status as the primary outcome, with secondary outcomes including measures of leg pain, low back pain, and global improvement/general health. The GRADE approach was used to assess the quality of the evidence.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Our searches yielded 1726 articles, of which 3 studies (N = 373 participants) were suitable for inclusion in meta-analysis. All included studies were deemed to have low risk of bias; no study had unacceptably high dropout rates. There was moderate evidence suggesting that active rehabilitation was more effective than usual care in improving both short- and long-term functional status after surgery. Similar findings were noted for secondary outcomes, including short-term improvement in low back pain and long-term improvement in both low back pain and leg pain.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We obtained moderate-quality evidence indicating that postoperative active rehabilitation after decompression surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis is more effective than usual care. Further work is required particularly with respect to the cost-effectiveness of such interventions.
  
  
  METHODS
  1.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Surgery and Cancer, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom †Medical Research Council Clinical Trials Unit, London, United Kingdom ‡Spinal Research Unit, University of Huddersfield, Huddersfield, United Kingdom §HFR Fribourg-Hôpital Cantonal, Fribourg, Switzerland ¶Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway University of London, Egham, United Kingdom; and ‖Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Alison H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: McGregor
authors.forename: Katrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Probyn
authors.forename: Suzie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cro
authors.forename: Caroline J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Doré
authors.forename: A Kim
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Burton
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Balagué
authors.forename: Tamar
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pincus
authors.forename: Jeremy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fairbank
mesh_terms: D019299:Decompression, Surgical / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D006801:Humans; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D013130:Spinal Stenosis / Q000534:rehabilitation* / Q000601:surgery*