Anterior lumbar interbody fusion for the treatment of postoperative spondylodiscitis.
OBJECTIVE
To analyze the clinical courses and outcomes after anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) for the treatment of postoperative spondylodiscitis.


METHODS
A total of 13 consecutive patients with postoperative spondylodiscitis treated with ALIF at our institute from January, 1994 to August, 2013 were included (92.3% male, mean age 54.5 years old). The outcome data including inflammatory markers (leukocyte count, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate), the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), the modified Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), and bony fusion rate using spine X-ray were obtained before and 6 months after ALIF.


RESULTS
All of the cases were effectively treated with combination of systemic antibiotics and ALIF with normalization of the inflammatory markers. The mean VAS for back and leg pain before ALIF was 6.8±1.1, which improved to 3.2±2.2 at 6 months after ALIF. The mean ODI score before ALIF was 70.0±14.8, which improved to 34.2±27.0 at 6 months after ALIF. Successful bony fusion rate was 84.6% (11/13) and the remaining two patients were also asymptomatic.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that ALIF is an effective treatment option for postoperative spondylodiscitis.
Department of Neurosurgery, Gangnam Severance Hospital, The Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Sung Han
SH
Kim
Department of Neurosurgery, Gangnam Severance Hospital, The Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Moo-Sung
MS
Kang
Department of Neurosurgery, Gangnam Severance Hospital, The Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Dong-Kyu
DK
Chin
Department of Neurosurgery, Gangnam Severance Hospital, The Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Keun-Su
KS
Kim
Department of Neurosurgery, Gangnam Severance Hospital, The Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Yong-Eun
YE
Cho
Department of Neurosurgery, Gangnam Severance Hospital, The Spine and Spinal Cord Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Sung-Uk
SU
Kuh
Anterior lumbar interbody fusion; Postoperative spondylodiscitis