Preoperative Chronic Opiate Use and Patient Reported Outcomes Following Adult Spinal Reconstructive Surgery

Preoperative chronic narcotic use has been linked to poor outcomes after surgery for degenerative spinal disorders in the form of lower health-related quality of life scores, higher revision rates, increased infections, lower likelihood of return to work, and higher 90-day readmission rates. This study evaluated the impact of preoperative chronic narcotic use on patient reported outcome measures following adult spinal reconstructive surgery.

Patients who underwent adult spinal reconstructive surgery over 2 years at our institution were identified from a prospectively maintained spine registry. These patients were grouped into chronic opiate users as defined by a 6-month duration of use with a minimum morphine equivalent dose of 30 mg/day. Patient reported outcome measures were collected prospectively.

Of 140 patients included for analysis, 30 (21.4%) patients were categorized as chronic opiate users. No differences were identified in mean preoperative patient reported outcome measures, including Oswestry Disability Index, health state, visual analog scale, and EQ-5D indices. At both 6 weeks and 6 months postoperatively, patients in the opiate group demonstrated significantly worse mean visual analog scale back pain scores relative to the nonopiate group. At 6 months postoperatively and at the last known clinical follow-up, Oswestry Disability Index scores were higher in the opiate group.

Chronic opiate use before adult spinal reconstructive surgery was associated with worse pain and disability following intervention. Further work is needed to understand the role of opiate weaning as part of a larger prehabilitation strategy for adult spinal reconstructive surgery.