SynthesisClinical orthopaedics and related research2015
Does surgical timing influence functional recovery after lumbar discectomy? A systematic review.
Synthesis in Clinical orthopaedics and related research, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 50 citations in OpenAlex.
- The effect of symptom duration on the outcomes of lumbar discectomy for radicular pain secondary to lumbar disc herniation: a systematic review and meta-analysis.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2025Pooled it
- Physical prognostic factors predicting outcome following lumbar discectomy surgery: systematic review and narrative synthesis.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2018Pooled it
- Chemonucleolysis for Lumbar Disc Herniation: History and Current State of the Technology.Journal of pain research · 2025Review
- Lumbar Disc Herniation—the Significance of Symptom Duration for the Indication for Surgery.Deutsches Arzteblatt international · 2024Review
- Role of surgery in primary lumbar disk herniation: WFNS spine committee recommendations.World neurosurgery: X · 2024Review
- Development and temporal validation of clinical prediction models for 1-year disability and pain after lumbar decompressive surgery. The Norwich Lumbar Surgery Predictor (development version).European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2023Article
- Predicting the Need for Surgery in Patients with Lumbar Disc Herniation: A New Internally Validated Scoring System.Asian spine journal · 2023Article
- The Impact of Preoperative Symptom Duration on Patient Outcomes After Posterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion.Global spine journal · 2023Article
- Effect of Preoperative Parameters on Outcomes of Lumbar Microdiscectomy: A Retrospective Analysis.Asian journal of neurosurgery · 2022Article
- Use of Artificial Intelligence for the Development of Predictive Model to Help in Decision-Making for Patients with Degenerative Lumbar Spine Disease.Asian journal of neurosurgery · 2022Article
- Surgical outcomes of full endoscopic spinal surgery for lumbar disc herniation over a 10-year period: A retrospective study.PloS one · 2020Article
- Influence of timing of surgery on Cauda equina syndrome: Outcomes at a national spinal centre.Journal of orthopaedics · 2018Article
- Open discectomy vs microdiscectomy for lumbar disc herniation - a protocol for a pragmatic comparative effectiveness study.F1000Research · 2016Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe impact of the duration of preoperative symptoms on outcomes after lumbar discectomy has not been sufficiently answered in a single study but is a potentially important clinical variable. QUESTIONS/PURPOSES: A systematic review was performed to answer two questions: (1) Does symptomatic duration before surgery influence functional recovery after lumbar discectomy? (2) What is the time point for intervention beyond which the extent of postoperative recovery might be compromised?
methodsThe systematic review began with a query of PubMed using a structured algorithm comprised of medical subject heading terms. This was supplemented by a keyword search in PubMed along with queries of Embase, Scopus, and Web of Science and searches of reference lists as well as the tables of contents of relevant journals. Eligible studies were those that evaluated aspects of recovery after elective discectomy and stratified duration of symptoms before surgery. Included papers were abstracted by two authors and determinations regarding the period of symptom duration and its impact on outcome were recorded. Eleven studies met all inclusion criteria. No prospectively randomized trials addressed our study questions.
resultsNine of 11 studies, four of which were prospective, maintained that longer symptom duration adversely impacted postsurgical recovery. There were substantial differences among the critical periods of symptom duration reported by individual studies, which ranged from 2 to 12 months. A preponderance of studies (five of nine) reported that surgical interventions could be performed at periods of 6 months or greater without impacting recovery.
conclusionsLonger symptom duration had an adverse impact on results in most studies after lumbar discectomy. A possible point beyond which outcomes may be compromised is 6 months after symptom onset. Limitations in the literature surveyed, however, prevent firm conclusions.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.