Iatrogenic Baastrup's Syndrome: A Potential Complication Following Anterior Interbody Lumbar Spinal Surgery

Background: Baastrup's Syndrome is a condition that occurs when there is abnormal contact between two adjacent spinous processes resulting in back pain. An alteration in lumbar spinal alignment and/or adjacent segment compensatory motion is thought to be potential causative factors. The objective of this study was to present a case series of what appears to be iatrogenic Baastrup's Syndrome as a mid-to-late term complication following anterior lumbar interbody surgery.

Methods: A retrospective chart review was performed of all patients undergoing anterior lumbar surgery for either fusion or disc replacement to determine the prevalence of Baastrup's Syndrome.

Results: Over a 12-year period, 855 patients who had undergone an anterior approach for lumbar spine surgery were identified. Of them 8 patients with evidence of Baastrup's Syndrome were found; this demonstrated a prevalence of 0.9%. Diagnostic injection was a helpful clinical tool in confirming the diagnosis of iatrogenic Baastrup's Syndrome. The partial removal of the impinging spinous processes resulted in excellent clinical relief.

Conclusions: Iatrogenic Baastrup's Syndrome may be an iatrogenic result of anterior lumbar surgery in small group of patients. Spinous process excision is a suggested treatment option. Further studies are necessary to explore the above phenomenon. This study is a Level 3 retrospective case series.