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Postsurgical factors most influence hospital length of stay after lumbar spine surgery
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Following lumbar spine surgery, several postsurgical factors were found to be effectively predictive of patients’ estimated lengths of hospital stay, according to recently published study data.
The retrospective study included 593 patients who had undergone lumbar spine surgery at the University of Kansas Hospital from October 2008 to April 2012. Researchers used potential predictors with significant correlations to length of stay as indicators in order to construct three latent factors (presurgical, surgical and postsurgical); these factors were then used to predict hospital length of stay (LOS) as part of a structural equation model.
Although presurgical and surgical factors did influence LOS, postoperative factors had the most influence on a patient’s LOS, according to the researchers.
The average LOS for a patient after surgery was 4.01 days, and four postsurgical factors were found to have a 47% variance on LOS. Postsurgical walking distance (166.43 feet), bed mobility and transfer dependency scores (9.81 out of 14 points), level of assistance during walking (5.18 out of 7 points) and balance scores (6.18 out of 10 points) had the most influence on LOS, according to the researchers.
The researchers concluded that because postsurgical factors are related to patients’ level of function, which is able to be modified using rehabilitation, it is possible to improve these factors in order to shorten patients’ length of hospital stay. – by Robert Linnehan
Disclosures: Kanaan reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.
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