Clinical and radiologic outcomes of single-level direct lateral lumbar interbody fusion in patients with osteopenia

Objective Subsidence of the interbody graft into the vertebral bodies is one of the major complications of direct lateral interbody fusion (DLIF), resulting in pseudoarthrosis and severe pain. Low bone mineral density (BMD) has been known to increase the risk of subsidence. This study aims to determine whether or not the osteopenia should influence the surgical results in DLIF surgery. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the data collected prospectively on all patients who underwent single-level DLIF at our institution. A total of 84 patients were included in this study, comprised of 41 in the osteopenia group and 43 in the normal BMD group. The clinical and radiologic characteristics were compared at preoperative and postoperative 1 and 2 years. Results At postoperative two years, there was a statistically significant difference in disc height and intervertebral foramen height at index level between the two groups (p = 0.039, 0.044, respectively), but there was no significant difference in total lumbar lordosis (p = 0.179). At 24-month postoperative, 92.7% of the osteopenia group and 95.3% of the normal BMD group were solidly fused (p = 0.672). All postoperative clinical scores (VAS back pain, VAS leg pain, and ODI) improved similarly in both groups without significant difference. The overall incidence of cage subsidence with >3 mm was 17.1% in the osteopenia group and 9.3% in the normal BMD group (p = 0.345). Conclusions Patients with osteopenia who undergo single-level DLIF combined with posterior fixation exhibited comparable clinical and radiological outcomes as patients with normal BMD.