Intravenous Corticosteroid Before Spinal Surgery Improves Clinical Outcomes Compared to Placebo .
Can Preoperative Intravenous Corticosteroids Administration Reduce Postoperative Pain Scores Following Spinal Fusion?: A Meta-Analysis.
J Invest Surg. 2020 Apr;33(4):307-316.A total of 10 randomized controlled trials containing 998 patients undergoing spinal fusion surgery were included in this meta-analysis comparing the treatment of pre-operative intravenous corticosteroids or placebo. The primary pooled outcome of interest was pain on a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) post-operation. Additional pooled outcomes included the post-operative nausea occurrence, the incidence of infection, total morphine consumption, and length of hospital stay post-spinal fusion surgery. For the primary outcome, the results showed statistically significantly favourable pooled scores in the corticosteroid group compared to the placebo at all timepoints (12, 24, 48, 72-hours post-surgery) and overall (p<0.00001). Similar results were found for all other outcomes including postoperative nausea occurrence, total morphine consumption, length of hospital stay (all p<0.00001), except for the incidence of infection (p=0.57). Furthermore, subgroup analyses were conducted for high-dose (≥10 mg) to low-dose (<10 mg) corticosteroids for VAS pain at 12-hours post-surgery: pooled scores were statistically significantly favorable in the corticosteroid group (p=0.001 for both).
Unlock the Full ACE Report
You have access to 4 more FREE articles this month.
Click below to unlock and view this ACE Reports
Unlock Now
Critical appraisals of the latest, high-impact randomized controlled trials and systematic reviews in orthopaedics
Access to OrthoEvidence podcast content, including collaborations with the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, interviews with internationally recognized surgeons, and roundtable discussions on orthopaedic news and topics
Subscription to The Pulse, a twice-weekly evidence-based newsletter designed to help you make better clinical decisions
Exclusive access to original content articles, including in-house systematic reviews, and articles on health research methods and hot orthopaedic topics