In a study result unveiled at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons in Washington, D.C. recently, researchers have
In a study result unveiled at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons in Washington, D.C. recently, researchers have said that back pain may be the result of several problems other than anatomical, and not taking these causes into account can restrict the effect of a surgery. The study that had observed about 6000 surgical patients treated at various centers of National Spine Network, US, said that patients who had other health troubles than back pain had benefited much less from the surgery.
The study participants were requested to fill out questionnaires regarding physiological conditions before and after surgery, whose profiles were then matched for emotional, social and psychological traits.Some of the factors that hampered a quick recovery from back surgery are depression, frequent headaches, use of tobacco and a low education level. The effect of these factors seems much stronger than preexisting conditions of cardiac problems and arthritis. Patients with multiple problems, health wise or otherwise, had more difficulty in coming back to normal life with total relief than those with less health problems. Patients having a gamut of other physical problems had it worse, in terms of the effect of the back surgery. The study suggests that the back pains may need to be looked into in totality with the preexisting conditions before deciding on surgery as a procedure.
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