Sharp rise in complex back surgery among older patients
April 11th, 2010 - 3:08 am ICT by IANSNew York, April 11(IANS) The percentage of older people undergoing the complicated surgery spinal stenosis to get rid of painful lower back has increased steeply, a new study shows.
Researchers said the increase was leading to higher medicare costs and more life-threatening complications.
The complex fusion procedure costs almost four times as much as decompression and is associated with three times the rate of life-threatening complications, reports nytimes.com.
However, “earlier studies have not found that the complex surgery leads to better results or greater pain relief,” said Richard A. Deyo, a professor of family and internal medicine at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland and the lead author of the study.
“Surgeons do prefer the more complex procedures. There are financial reasons to prefer them,” he added.
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Tags: back surgery, decompression, deyo, fusion, internal medicine, medicare, medicare costs, medicine, oregon health, pain relief, science university, spinal stenosis, three times
