Bariatric surgery may reduce spinal pathology symptoms

Issue: October 2019

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Shaleen Vira

CHICAGO — Patients who are obese and have cervical or lumbar spinal pathologies may benefit from bariatric surgery, which resolved symptoms in most patients, according to results presented at the North American Spine Society Annual Meeting.

Shaleen Vira, MD, and colleagues assessed the occurrence of spine complaints before and after bariatric surgery for 4,300 patients from 2004 to 2013, and found significant resolution of spinal symptoms among a high percentage of patients with cervical spine pathology 360 days postoperatively.

“For cervical herniation, a lot of the patients reduced their symptoms over time and same for cervical spondylosis and cervical degeneration,” Vira said in his presentation here.

Vira also noted patients experienced a reduction in lumbar spine pathology after bariatric surgery. When comparing patients with cervical spine pathology vs. lumbar spine pathology, he said patients with lumbar herniation had a significantly higher 90-day resolution vs. patients with cervical herniation.

“Comparing the cervical vs. lumbar stenosis patients, the resolution rates did not differ significantly at 90 or 180 days,” Vira said.

However, Vira noted patients with cervical stenosis had significantly higher resolution rates at 360 days postoperatively. He added all patients improved at 720 days postoperatively, with no significant differences between the two groups.

“With respect to comparing the differences between cervical and lumbar patients by each postoperative time point, the lumbar disc herniation patients improved better at 90 days and the cervical stenosis and spondylosis patients did better at 180 days and 360 days than the lumbar spondylosis and degeneration [group], which again had no difference at 720 days,” Vira said. – by Casey Tingle

Reference:

Passias PG, et al. Abstract 82. Presented at: North American Spine Society Annual Meeting; Sept. 25-28, 2019; Chicago.

Disclosure: Vira reports no relevant financial disclosures.