Lumbar Spinal Surgery in Patients With Parkinson Disease: A Multicenter Retrospective Study

A multicenter, retrospective study.

To identify the factors that affect surgery-related complications and to clarify the surgical strategy for treating lumbar disorders in Parkinson disease (PD).

Previous studies have reported a high complication rate for spinal surgery in patients with PD. Because of the limited number of studies, there are no guidelines for spinal surgery for PD patients.

We retrospectively reviewed the records for 67 PD patients who underwent lumbar spinal surgery. The patients were divided into 3 groups: 12 patients underwent laminectomy (Laminectomy), 24 underwent fusion surgery (Fusion) for lumbar canal stenosis, and 31 underwent corrective surgery for spinal deformity (Deformity). We assessed surgery-related complications in each group. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to identify the factors that predicted surgical failure.

The percentages of patients who experienced failure of the initial surgery were 33.3% in the Laminectomy group, 45.8% in the Fusion group, and 67.7% in the Deformity group. The rates of implant failure were high in the Fusion and Deformity groups (33.3% and 38.7%, respectively). The Deformity group had a high rate of postoperative fracture (41.9%). These complications occurred at the most caudal site within a year after surgery and resulted in progression of kyphotic deformity. Multivariate analysis revealed that preoperative lumbar lordosis angle (LL) (per -1 degree) was associated with a failure of the initial surgery (hazard ratio, 1.024; 95% confidence interval, 1.008-1.04; P=0.003).

We have demonstrated that a small preoperative LL increases the risk for failure of the initial surgery. Attaining and maintaining the proper lumbar lordosis with rigid fixation may be necessary in PD patients with a small preoperative LL.