title: The effect of transforaminal epidural steroid injections in patients with spondylolisthesis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Transforaminal epidural steroid injection (TFE) is a widely accepted non-surgical treatment for pain in patients with spondylolisthesis. However, the effectiveness of TFE has not been compared in patients with degenerative (DS) and isthmic spondylolisthesis (IS).
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To compare the effectiveness of bilateral TFEs in DS and IS.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients who underwent bilateral TFEs for spondylolisthesis at University of California San Francisco Orthopaedic Institute from 2009 to 2014 were evaluated retrospectively.
  
  
  RESULTS
  DS patients (120 female, 51 male) were significantly older and had higher comorbidity than those with IS (18 female, 14 male). They had better pain relief after TFE than patients with IS (72.11 ± 27.46% vs 54.39 ± 34.31%; p = 0.009). The number of TFEs, the mean duration of pain relief after TFE, follow-up periods, translation and facet joint widening were similar in DS and IS groups (p > 0.05). DS group had higher successful treatment rate (66.1% vs 46.9%, p = 0.009) and longer duration of pain relief (181.29 ± 241.37 vs 140.07 ± 183.62 days, p = 0.065) compared to IS group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Bilateral TFEs at the level of spondylolisthesis effectively decreased pain in patients. TFEs provided better pain relief for longer duration in patients with DS than for those with IS.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Marmara University, Pain Management, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Savas
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sencan
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Emel E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Ozcan-Eksi
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Hemra
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cil
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Bobby
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Tay
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Sigurd
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Berven
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Shane
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Burch
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Vedat
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Deviren
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Sibel
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Demir-Deviren
mesh_terms: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007267:Injections / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013168:Spondylolisthesis / Q000145:classification / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D021801:Zygapophyseal Joint
chemical_list: D000305:Adrenal Cortex Hormones
keywords: Degenerative spondylolisthesis; comorbidity scores; isthmic spondylolisthesis; pain relief; transforaminal epidural steroid injection