Adjacent Segment Disease after Instrumented Fusion for Adult Lumbar Spondylolisthesis: Incidence and Risk Factors

Spondylolisthesis is characterized by the forward slippage of one vertebral on the next caudal vertebra [1]. It occurs most frequently in the lumbar spine, and the most common etiologies are degenerative and isthmic spondylolisthesis [2]. Lumbar spondylolisthesis is a common cause for low back pain, radiculopathy, and/or neurogenic claudication among the adult population. Decompression and fusion with instrumentation is a common procedure for adult lumbar spondylolisthesis. Although instrumented fusion can achieve a high fusion rate and favorable clinical outcomes, adjacent segment disease (ASD) is a common problem following lumbar fusion [3 –5].

Source: Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery - February 25, 2017 Category: Neurosurgery Authors: Zhao-Ming Zhong, Vedat Deviren, Bobby Tay, Shane Burch, Sigurd H. Berven Source Type: research