Clinical Comparison of Combined Cortical Bone Trajectory and Transarticular Surface Screw Versus Standard Pedicle Screw Insertion by Wiltse Approach for L5 Isthmic Spondylolisthesis.

Abstract

This was a retrospective cohort study. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and invasiveness of a combined screw insertion technique [using cortical bone trajectory (CBT) screw and transarticular surface screw (TASS)] for patients with L5 isthmic spondylolisthesis. Lumbosacral posterior fixation using TASS is safe, with high biomechanical strength. However, data regarding its clinical outcomes, effectiveness, and invasiveness, are lacking. This study included 111 patients who underwent single-level L5-S1 posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) for L5 isthmic spondylolisthesis. The cohort was stratified into 2 groups: the Wiltse group included patients who underwent PLIF between 2008 and 2013 with standard pedicle screw fixation via Wiltse approach and the CBT/TASS group included those who underwent PLIF from 2014 onward with CBT/TASS fixation. After propensity score matching of the CBT/TASS and Wiltse groups, the surgical times, estimated blood loss (EBL), length of in-hospital stays, clinical scores, serum creatine kinase concentration, radiographic parameters, and bone union rate were compared using the χ2 test or Mann-Whitney U test. In addition, multivariate linear regression analyses, with surgical time and EBL as objective variables applied after Box-Cox transformation, were performed. The matched CBT/TASS group showed significantly shorter surgical times (P<0.001), lower EBL (P=0.032), shorter in-hospital stays (P=0.005), and lower 3-day postoperative serum creatine kinase concentrations (P=0.014) than the matched Wiltse group. However, neither the postoperative grade of spondylolisthesis, the L5-S1 lordotic angle, nor the clinical scores were significantly different between matched groups. The bone union rates were 94.7% and 96.2% in the matched CBT/TASS and Wiltse groups, respectively (P=1.000). Regression analysis showed that CBT/TASS was an independent factor significantly related to shorter surgical times and lower EBL (P<0.001 and P=0.001, respectively). Compared with Wiltse approach, CBT/TASS is a less invasive technique, with a shorter surgical time and sufficient clinical outcomes for patients with L5 isthmic spondylolisthesis. Level III-treatment benefits.