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Surgery can be effective for sacroiliac joint pain, but other solutions should also be explored
Surgery can be an effective option for treating sacroiliac joint pain certain patients; however, due to the difficulty of diagnosing the pain, as well as the unknown efficacy of sacroiliac joint fusion, other options should also be explored, according to researchers.
Through a literature review, the researchers identified 430 patients from 16 peer-reviewed journal articles meeting the inclusion criteria for the study. A total of 131 patients underwent open surgery and 299 underwent minimally invasive surgery (MIS) for sacroiliac joint (SIJ) fusion, with a mean follow up of 60 months for the open surgery patients and 21 months for MIS patients.
For open surgery, fusion success was determined by CT scans, and success rates ranged from 20% to 90%. For MIS, success rates ranged from 13% to 100%. Excellent clinical and patient satisfaction was reported for open surgery, based on pain reduction, function and quality of life scores, with a mean of 54%. For patients who underwent MIS, rates of excellent outcome were based on patient-reported satisfaction with the surgery, for a mean of 84%.
Between the two groups, the researchers observed an average reoperation rate of 15% for patients who underwent open surgery, compared with an average reoperation rate of 6% for patients who underwent MIS.
The researchers concluded that a consideration of the cause of pain and treatment alternatives should be explored before a patient resorts to surgery for sacroiliac joint pain. – by Robert Linnehan
Disclosures: Zaidi reports no relevant financial disclosures. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.