The use of clinical pathways in performing microlumbar discectomy

Abstract

Microlumbar discectomy is less invasive and yields more stable treatment results, it is thought to be one of the most suitable treatment program to introduce the clinical pathways in the field of Orthopaedic surgery. Fifty patients presenting with lumbar disc herniation have been operated on by this method since we introduced the clinical pathways. Patients in the study were evaluated by analyzing the surgical outcome, length of hospitalization, and other variances that occurred pre- and postoperatively and their effects on the course of treatment. Longer hospital stay preoperatively and less favorable results postoperatively were the two main variances that resulted in longer hospital stays. These problems should be resolved to carry out the clinical pathways more effectively.