Changes in quality of life and work status after surgical management of meralgia paresthetica- an observational cohort study.

S Baruchi, B Schönberg, J Reinsch, J Alsolivany, A Zdunczyk, N F Dengler

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Article in Brain & spine, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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6 authors.

S BaruchiDepartment of Neurosurgery, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.

B SchönbergDepartment of Neurosurgery, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.

J ReinschDepartment of Neurosurgery, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.

J AlsolivanyDepartment of Neurosurgery, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.

A ZdunczykDepartment of Neurosurgery, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.

N F DenglerDepartment of Neurosurgery, Charité Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Corporate Member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and Berlin Institute of Health, Charitéplatz 1, 10117, Berlin, Germany.

Funding

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6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Purpose: Surgical management of meralgia paresthetica (MP) is effective in reducing pain. This study aims to analyze changes in health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and work status after surgical management of MP. Methods: The institutional database was screened for surgically treated MP cases between January 1, 2010 and December 31, 2022. Patients were followed up by a standardized questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L) and interview. Results: The final analysis included 24 patients at a median age of 51 years (interquartile range [IQR] 40-57). Comorbidities were present in 92 % of patients. At a median time of follow-up of 25 months (IQR 11-57) after surgery, 83 % of patients reported a benefit, independent of comorbidities or individual work-status. Pre-surgical pain (on a numeric scale from 1 to 10) improved from 8 (IQR 6-9) to 4 (IQR 1-7; p < 0.001). Preoperatively, HRQoL (on a visual scale from 0 to 100) was rated at a median of 50 (IQR 30-75) and improved to a median of 70 (IQR 35-89; p = 0.004). Improvements in HRQoL were more pronounced among patients without comorbidity. A dimension specific EQ-5D-5L analysis for mobility/self-care/usual activities/pain/anxiety showed improvements from 3/1/3/4/2 pre-operatively to 2/1/2/3/2 at follow-up.Although most patients that had been part of the active workforce showed a benefit from surgery, 25 % of them did not return to work. Conclusion: The majority of MP patients showed improvement in MP specific symptoms. HRQoL after surgery only improved among patients without depression, obesity and/or cardiovascular comorbidities as well as in non-retired subjects. However, a substantial number of patients did not return to work.

Indexed as

Health related quality of lifeLateral femoral cutaneous nerveMeralgia parestheticaNeurectomyNeurolysisReturn to work

Identifiers

PMID41551868

DOI10.1016/j.bas.2025.105916

PMCPMC12809400

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