The effects of single-level instrumented lumbar laminectomy on adjacent spinal biomechanics

Study Design Biomechanical study. Objective Posterior instrumentation is used to stabilize the spine after a lumbar laminectomy. However, the effects on the adjacent segmental stability are unknown. Therefore, we studied the range of motion (ROM) and stiffness of treated lumbar spinal segments and cranial segments after a laminectomy and after posterior instrumentation in flexion and extension (FE), lateral bending (LB), and axial rotation (AR). These outcomes might help to better understand adjacent segment disease (ASD), which is reported cranial to the level on which posterior instrumentation is applied. Methods We obtained 12 cadaveric human lumbar spines. Spines were axially loaded with 250 N for 1 hour. Thereafter, 10 consecutive load cycles (4 Nm) were applied in FE, LB, and AR. Subsequently, a laminectomy was performed either at L2 or at L4. Thereafter, load-deformation tests were repeated, after similar preloading. Finally, posterior instrumentation was added to the level treated with a laminectomy before testing was repeated. The ROM and stiffness of the treated, the cranial adjacent, and the control segments were calculated from the load-displacement data. Repeated-measures analyses of variance used the spinal level as the between-subject factor and a laminectomy or instrumentation as the within-subject factors. Results After the laminectomy, the ROM increased (+19.4%) and the stiffness decreased (-18.0%) in AR. The ROM in AR of the adjacent segments also increased (+11.0%). The ROM of treated segments after instrumentation decreased in FE (-74.3%), LB (-71.6%), and AR (-59.8%). In the adjacent segments after instrumentation, only the ROM in LB was changed (-12.9%). Conclusions The present findings do not substantiate a biomechanical pathway toward or explanation for ASD.