Minimally Invasive Versus Open Surgery for Thoracolumbar Fractures Treatment : A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials and Prospective Studies.

STUDY DESIGN

Meta-analysis.

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to pool the available data comparing MIS to open surgery for thoracolumbar fractures and provide a more comprehensive assessment of this topic.

BACKGROUND

There remains a debate over whether minimally invasive surgery (MIS) or open fixation provides superior outcomes for patients with thoracolumbar fractures. While several randomized controlled trials and prospective studies have compared these two approaches, the published studies are limited by sample size.

METHODS

Following PRISMA guidelines, a systematic review of the PubMed, Cochrane, and Google Scholar (pages 1-20) databases was performed on October 1, 2024. The extracted data consisted of complications, surgery-related parameters, early and late postoperative back pain, and postoperative regional kyphosis.

RESULTS

Five RCTs and five prospective studies were included in the meta-analysis, including 584 patients, with 299 in the MIS group and 285 in the open group. MIS patients were shown to have less EBL (MD=-155.86; 95% CI: -217.97 to -93.76, P <0.001), a shorter LOS (MD=-3.34; 95% CI: -4.62 to -2.06, P <0.001), lower pain scores during the early postoperative period (MD=-1.14; 95% CI: -1.56 to -0.71, P <0.001), and less regional kyphosis (MD=-5.17; 95% CI: -7.17 to -3.16, P <0.001), even when stratifying by study type. In addition, fluoroscopy time was longer in the MIS group (MD=0.60; 95% CI: 0.21-0.98, P =0.003), although this difference was not seen when looking at RCTs only.

CONCLUSIONS

Among patients with thoracolumbar fractures, treatment with MIS was associated with decreased EBL, shorter LOS, earlier pain reduction, and less regional kyphosis compared with treatment with open fixation. In addition, higher radiation exposure was seen among patients treated with MIS. While MIS offers several potential benefits, both MIS and open fixation remain safe and reliable options for the treatment of thoracolumbar fractures.