• Francesco Costa, Alessandro Ortolina, Massimo Tomei, Andrea Cardia, Edwin Zekay, and Maurizio Fornari.
• Neurosurgery, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Via A. Manzoni, 56, 20089, Rozzano, Milan, Italy, f.costa@fastwebmail.it.
• Eur Spine J. 2013 Nov 1; 22 Suppl 6: S910-3.

ObjectiveTo evaluate the clinical and radiological outcomes of elderly (>75 years old) patients who underwent spinal instrumented fusion surgery.MethodsPatients underwent lumbar pedicle screw fixation and fusion for degenerative spondylolisthesis. Clinical and radiological outcomes were assessed.Results53 patients were studied. Pre-operative VAS was 7.8, ODI was 47.6 %. 254 screws were placed (36 single level; 13 double levels and 4 cases three-levels). No mortality occurred. At 18 months follow-up VAS was 4.1, ODI was 21.8 %. A stable fusion was observed in 41 patients (78.8 %); in four cases there was minimal sign of instability and seven patients underwent a second surgery due to screw mobilization.ConclusionSpinal fixation and fusion in patients older than 75 years old grants good results in terms of quality of life but the rate of morbidity is higher than standard spine surgery. Rate of fusion especially is still a critical point.

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