ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Med.
Sec. Geriatric Medicine
A Multidimensional In-Depth Analysis of Postoperative Pain After PLIF in Patients With Degenerative Lumbar Spine Disease
Provisionally accepted
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China
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Purpose: To comprehensively investigate multifactorial influences on postoperative pain in patients with degenerative lumbar spine disease undergoing posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF), thereby guiding targeted rehabilitation. Patients and methods: We reviewed 316 patients (age >40) who underwent PLIF from January 2022 to May 2024. Based on postoperative Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) scores and pain duration, they were divided into a non-pain group (210 cases) and a pain group (106 cases). We assessed paraspinal muscle indices (PMI, MMI), Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS), postoperative exercise duration, surgical segments, drainage removal time, and mannitol usage. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analyses were conducted. Results: No significant differences were found in age, BMI, education, surgical duration, drainage time, disease duration, time to first ambulation, or mannitol usage (P > 0.05). However, gender, SAS scores, surgical segments, drainage volume at removal, PMI, MMI, average standing time in the first two weeks, and duration of straight-leg raise exercises differed significantly (P < 0.05). Multivariate analysis identified surgical segment (P = 0.008), drainage volume at removal (P = 0.008), MMI (P < 0.001), average standing time (P = 0.010), and straight-leg raise exercise duration (P = 0.012) as independent risk factors. Conclusion: Paraspinal muscle health and early postoperative exercise are crucial factors influencing PLIF-related postoperative pain. Tailored rehabilitation, enhanced muscle function, and optimized early exercise may reduce postoperative pain and improve outcomes.
Keywords: Posterior Lumbar Interbody Fusion (PLIF), Degenerative lumbar spine disease, Postoperative pain, Paraspinal Muscle Indices (PMI, MMI), Early exercise
Received: 24 Aug 2025; Accepted: 26 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Tang, Sun, Sun, Li, Wang and Chen. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Dan Chen
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