Coflex Interlaminar Stabilization and Decompression for Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: A 7-Year Follow-Up and Assessment

Background: The use of dynamic stabilization devices such as the Coflex device are recent advances in techniques of lumbar spine surgery which have been developed in an effort to overcome the adverse effects of decompression and spinal fusion, which is long been considered the gold standard in the treatment of lumbar degenerative disease. There have been a few studies which assess its outcomes, but only go to as far as a four-year assessment. Thus, this study aims to evaluate retrospectively the clinical effects in the long-term, 7-year follow up of patients who underwent lumbar decompression and Coflex interlaminar stabilization for treatment of spinal stenosis with symptomatic low back pain.

Methods: This study was a retrospective review of patients who underwent lumbar decompression with concomitant placement of Coflex device for a diagnosis of degenerative lumbar disease, and/or low-grade spondylolisthesis (Meyerding Gr I). Statistical analysis was employed using a paired t-test to assess for statistical significance in terms of clinical outcomes in the determined points of follow-up.

Results: This study analyzed a total of 16 patients with a 7-year follow up who underwent lumbar decompression and Coflex interlaminar stabilization under a single surgeon in a tertiary level center. The average age is 48 years old with a male predominance in the pool of patients. The Oswestry disabilty inde (ODI) and visual analog scale (VAS) leg and back pain scores of both groups significantly improved compared with the baseline (all P<0.05), and no difference were indicated in terms of the VAS back pain score at the subsequent follow-up point. 

Conclusions: The present study was able to demonstrate that lumbar decompression along with Coflex interlaminar stabilization is able to achieve long-term satisfactory clinical outcomes and may present as a viable option in the treatment of select patients with symptomatic back and leg pain in the background of lumbar degenerative disease.

Keywords: Coflex, Lumbar degenerative disease, ODI, VAS