Fusion rate after posterior lumbar interbody fusion with carbon fiber implant: 1-year follow-up of 51 patients.

Problems associated with posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) have traditionally included the need for donor bone, prolonged healing time of donor bone, the difficulty of cutting precise bony channels, the risk of retropulsion of graft, postoperative collapse of the bone graft, and pseudarthrosis. To avoid these problems a carbon fiber reinforced polymer implant cage has been developed to facilitate interbody fusion. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the technical problems and fusion rate associated with these new device for PLIF. Between April 1991 and December 1993, 65 pairs of these implant cages were sold in Sweden. They were traced to six hospitals, where they had been used in the treatment of 51 patients operated on at a total of 65 levels. All PLIF were supplemented with VSP (Variable Screw Placement) instrumentation. All medical records were evaluated and all patients were examined with plain radiographs taken at least 1 year after surgery. If that investigation did not show a clear fusion they were also evaluated with CT (18 patients, 27 levels). No intraoperative problems with the device have been reported; 44 patients (86%) and 58 levels (89%) achieved successful fusion. All patients bar one maintained their immediately obtained postoperative disc height. CT with 1-mm slices and sagittal reconstruction is most helpful if radiographs are difficult to interpret.