2021 Volume 12 Issue 9 Pages 1130-1134
Introduction: The preoperative nutritional status of patients undergoing thoracolumbar-lumbar surgery was evaluated using the prognostic nutritional index (PNI) for determining its effects on surgery and perioperative complications.
Methods: Ninety-eight patients who had undergone thoracolumbar-lumbar surgery from November 2010 to July 2018 were recruited for the study (mean age 64.7±16.1 years). PNI was calculated using the following formula: serum albumin levels (g/dL) ×10+total lymphocyte count (/μL) ×0.005. Patients with a PNI of <50 and ≥50 were defined as the low PNI group and normal PNI group, respectively. Logistic regression analysis was performed by comparing the background, intraoperative/perioperative data, and complications of patients. The factors involved in the occurrence of complications were also examined.
Results: While 43 patients were included in the low PNI group, 55 were included in the normal PNI group. A significant difference was observed in the mean age (70.8±12.0 vs. 59.9±17.3 years), length of hospital stay (31.2±16.1 vs. 21.6±12.6 days), home discharge rate (67.4% vs. 89.1%), and medical complication rate (18.6% vs. 0%) between the two groups (p < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis revealed that PNI was a predictor of medical complications.
Conclusions: The present study showed that 43.9% of patients with low PNI had longer hospital stays, lower home discharge rates, and higher percentages of medical complications, thus suggesting that low PNI is a predictor of perioperative medical complications.
