Spinal fusion review finds recovery advantages alongside longer operating times
Mostly retrospective studies associated the endoscopic approach with less bleeding and shorter stays. Complication and fusion rates showed no statistically significant differences.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
For people undergoing lumbar fusion, UELIF was associated with less bleeding, shorter hospital stays and favorable pain results at selected assessments compared with MIS-TLIF. It also required longer operations and fluoroscopy. Complication and fusion rates did not differ statistically significantly, leaving uncertainty about whether either approach offers an overall advantage.
Most studies were retrospective, and results varied substantially across studies. The abstract omits units for several pooled estimates, limiting interpretation of their size.
What researchers found
Complication rates
UELIF versus MIS-TLIF at final follow-up, whose timing is unspecified; p > 0.05.
Reported recovery differences
Reported advantages covered blood loss, postoperative drainage, time to walking and hospital stay. Pain and disability scores also favored the endoscopic approach at selected assessments, but the abstract does not establish the clinical size of these differences.
Interpreting inconclusive comparisons
Fusion rates, disc height and lumbar curvature showed no statistically significant group differences at the final assessment. Such results leave uncertainty about differences between procedures; they do not demonstrate that the procedures are equivalent.
The original publication
Uniportal endoscopic lumbar interbody fusion versus minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion for the treatment of lumbar degenerative diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Zhang Y, Ju J, Wu J
Eur J Med Res · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41514424
- Record checked
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