ARE THERE DIFFERENCES IN THE SYMPTOMS, SIGNS AND OUTCOME AFTER LUMBARDISC SURGERY IN THE ELDERLY COMPARED WITH YOUNGER PATIENTS

Age is claimed by several authors to be a predictor of bad outcome aft er lumbar disc surgery. The aim of this study is to evaluate the influ ence of the patients age on preoperative symptoms and the outcome. Gen eral data, symptoms, signs and neurological findings of 219 patients w ere recorded preoperatively Ninety-two per cent of the patients receiv ed a follow-up examination by an independent investigator after a mean of 298 days. All patients older than 59 years were defined as belongi ng to the group of elderly patients (n = 30).The other patients were d efined as the younger group (n = 189).The outcome was measured by a vi sual analogue rating scale. Outcome was not statistically different in both groups. In our opinion, the indications for surgery for a lumbar disc herniation should be no different for older patients even though nerve root tension signs appear to be less marked in older patients.