title: The role of surgery for treatment of low back pain: insights from the randomized controlled Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trials.
abstract: Low back pain (LBP) is a common medical problem with high morbidity and healthcare costs. The optimal management strategy, including the role of surgical intervention, remains controversial. The Spine Patient Outcomes Research Trials were randomized controlled studies conducted to assess the effectiveness of surgery for three of the most common conditions implicated in LBP: Intervertebral disc herniation, degenerative spondylolisthesis, and spinal stenosis. Despite challenges in data interpretation related to patient cross over, these studies support the efficacy of surgery as treatment for these three common conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Abraham
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Robert C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Rennert
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Joel R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Martin
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ciacci
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Taylor
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Resnick
authors.affiliation: Division of Neurosurgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Ekkehard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kasper
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Clark C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chen
keywords: Low back pain; lumbar disc herniation; spondylolisthesis; stenosis