A comparison of neurogenic claudication outcome score and oswestry disability index in degenerative lumbar spinal canal stenosis post decompression, posterior stabilization and fusion

Degenerative lumbar spinal canal stenosis (LSCS) is a narrowing of the spinal canal or intervertebral foramina secondary to degenerative changes. Current treatments focused mainly on improving the functional outcome and quality of life. Functional outcome is assessed by measuring level of satisfaction, pain, disability, range of motion and radiographic measurements. The Neurogenic Claudication Outcome Score (NCOS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) are tools commonly employed to assess the functional outcome of such patients and have been shown to strongly correlate with level of disability in a group of patients with lumbar spinal stenosis. The aim of this study is to compare the responsiveness of NCOS and ODI in measuring the functional outcome of patients with degenerative LSCS post decompression, stabilization and fusion. This is a prospective study involving 36 patients diagnosed with degenerative LSCS for a period of 5 years. Patients were assessed during pre-operation and at 3-month post-operation. We found that There are significant differences between the preoperative NCOS and ODI compared to 3 months post-operative, with effect size of 0.61 for NCOS and 0.54 for ODI. Both NCOS and ODI questionnaires exhibit good responsiveness in assessing the functional outcome of patients with degenerative LSCS, however NCOS was shown to be more responsive than ODI.