Abstract
BACKGROUND CONTEXT Surgical decompression has been shown to improve long-term function, disability and quality of life (QOL) in degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM); however, the role of surgery, and the effect on functional and QOL outcomes, in elderly patients with DCM is controversial. PURPOSE To investigate the effect of older age (over 70) on the functional and QOL impairment and outcomes after DCM surgery compared to younger adults. STUDY DESIGN/SETTING Prospective, multicentre observational studies on the outcomes of surgery for DCM; the AO Spine CSM-North America and the CSM-International studies. PATIENT SAMPLE A harmonized, combined dataset of 757 patients enrolled from both studies. OUTCOME MEASURES Functional assessment was performed with the modified Japanese Orthopedic Association score (mJOA). QOL outcomes were measured by the SF-36 physical and mental component scores. METHODS Of 757 patients enrolled in both studies, 107 patients were identified as elderly (70 years or older) at the time of surgery. Outcomes and functional status were assessed at 6-, 12- and 24-month intervals. In addition to unadjusted univariate analyses, multiple linear regression was used to evaluate the effect of age ≥70 on change in outcome scores adjusting for diabetes, cardiac comorbidities, cigarette smoking, psychiatric disorders, number of operated levels, surgical approach and baseline mJOA. RESULTS The baseline mJOA in the elderly group was significantly lower than the younger group (11.0 [95% CI 10.4-11.5] vs 12.9 [12.7-13.1]; p= CONCLUSIONS In this combined dataset from 2 large prospectively collected multicentre studies on DCM surgery, the group aged 70 or greater demonstrated significantly worse functional and QOL recovery when compared to the younger cohort after adjusting for the effect of comorbidities, number of operated levels, surgical approach and baseline mJOA. Elderly patients undergoing surgery for DCM should therefore be counseled appropriately regarding expectations of surgery. FDA DEVICE/DRUG STATUS This abstract does not discuss or include any applicable devices or drugs.
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