ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Loss of sacral slope has been shown to be an important anatomic basis for low back pain. The effect of sacral slope changes after lumbar fusion on pain relief remains unclear.OBJECTIVE: To analyze the variations of sacral slope and clinical significance at the early stage after posterior lumbar interbody fusion at L4-5.METHODS: Sixty patients with herniation at disc levels L4-5 and spinal stenosis (n=38) or lumbar spondylolisthesis at L4 (n=22) undergoing posterior lumbar interbody fusion were enrolled. All patients were followed up for 12-24 months to compare the sacral slop at baseline and postoperatively. The clinical outcomes were evaluated by MacNab criteria, and its correlation with age, sex and sacral slop variations was analyzed.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: At 12-24 months postoperatively, the sacral slope in the two groups was significantly improved than that at baseline (P 0.05). The age, sex and sacral slop variations showed no significant effects on the early clinical outcomes (P > 0.05).These results suggest that posterior lumbar interbody fusion can markedly improve the sacral slope in patients with spinal stenosis and lumbar spondylolisthesis at early period. Furthermore, age, sex, and sacral slope variations all show no obvious effect on postoperative early functional recovery.