Comparative Analysis of Early Outcomes and Complications of PSO Among Neurosurgeons and Orthopedic Surgeons

Abstract

Study Design: Retrospective comparative cohort study using the National Surgical Quality Improvement Program. Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate trends in the annual number of PSOs performed, describe the patient populations associated with each cohort, and compare outcomes between specialties. Summary of Background Data: Pedicle subtraction osteotomies (PSO) are complex and advanced spine deformity surgical procedures performed by neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons. Though both sets of surgeons can be equally qualified and credentialed to perform a PSO, it is possible that differences in training and exposure could translate into differences in patient management and outcomes. Methods: Patients that underwent lumbar PSO from 2005 to 2014 in the American College of Surgeons-National Surgical Quality Improvement Program registry were identified. Relevant demographic, preoperative comorbidity, and postoperative 30-day complications were queried and analyzed. The data was divided into 2 cohorts consisting of those patients who were treated by neurosurgeons versus orthopedic surgeons. Additional data from the Scoliosis Research Society Morbidity and Mortality database was queried and analyzed for comparison. Results: Demographic and comorbidity factors were similar between the neurosurgery and orthopedic surgery cohorts, except there were higher rates of hypertension among orthopedic surgeon-performed PSOs (65.66% vs. 48.67%, P=0.004). Except for 2012, in every year queried, orthopedic surgeons reported more PSOs than neurosurgeons. In patients who underwent lumbar fusion surgery, there was a higher rate of PSOs if the surgery was performed by an orthopedic surgeon (OR 1.7824, 95% CI: 1.4017–2.2665). The incidence of deep vein thrombosis after PSOs was higher for neurosurgery compared with orthopedic surgery (8.85% vs. 1.20%, P=0.004). However, besides deep vein thrombosis, there were no salient differences in surgical complication rates between neurosurgeon-performed PSOs and orthopedic surgeon-performed PSOs. Conclusions: The number of PSO procedures performed by neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons has increased annually. Differences in outcomes between neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons suggest an opportunity for wider assessment and alignment of adult spinal deformity surgery exposure and training across specialties.

Differences in productivity and collaboration patterns on spine-related research between neurosurgeons and orthopedic spine surgeons: Bibliometric analysis

“…Spinal surgery is a discipline that falls under 2 surgical specialties: neurological surgery and orthopedic surgery. [ 1 ] Previous studies have compared outcomes between neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons across various areas, such as early outcomes and complications of pedicle subtraction osteotomies, [ 2 ] representation of women on editorial boards of spine-related journals, [ 3 ] resident training courses in adult spine surgery, [ 4 ] workforce involvement, [ 5 ] competency for common spinal conditions, [ 6 ] differences in classifying cervical dislocation injuries and making assessment and treatment decisions, [ 7 ] and research achievements (RAs). [ 1 , 8 ] However, there has been little research conducted on author collaboration in this field, and the definition of author collaboration (AC) [ 9 ] based on clustering remains unclear.…”