Frequency and Risk Factors for Neurogenic Bowel and Bladder Following Basic Spine Procedures

Objective: To study the frequency and risk factors for constipation and urinary retention following basic spine procedures.

Study Setting: Neurosurgery department Khyber Teaching Hospital Peshawar Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Study Duration: March 2022 to March 2023.

Study Design: Cross-sectional study (descriptive).

Material and Methods: After taking approval from the hospitals ethical and research committee a single center review of the medical records of all patients who underwent common surgical procedures of the spine were collected and patients followed for short term post -operative outcomes. Data was analyzed by using the statistical software SPSS version 23.0 and the results were presented in the form of tables and charts.

Results: Among 360 patients that were included in the trial, 205 (56.9%) were males and 105 (43.1%) were females. The mean age of presentation was 40.87 ± 13.01 SD. It was observed that 78 patients developed constipation (21.7%) and 52 patients had urinary retention after surgery (14.4%). There was significant association between duration of the procedure and past history of gastrointestinal disorders with the risk of having neurogenic bowel disorder (NBD) in the post operative period (p-value <0.001). Patients with higher BMIs had more chances to develop neurogenic bladder (NB) later on (p-value 0.003).

Conclusion: Despite improvements in post operative care and application of modern guidelines for enhanced recovery, NBD and NB is still observed in patients undergoing basic spine procedure.