A double-blind, randomized controlled, prospective trial assessing the effectiveness of oral corticoids in the treatment of symptomatic lumbar canal stenosis

Journal of Negative Results in Biomedicine

Jamil Natour¹  Luiz Claudio L Rodrigues² 

[1] Disciplina de Reumatologia, Universidade Federal de São Paulo – UNIFESP, Rua Botucatu 740, Sao Paulo, SP CEP: 04023-900, Brazil;Orthopaedic Department, Santa Marcelina Hospital, São Paulo, Brazil

关键词: Corticoid;    Neurogenic claudication;    Treatment;    Lumbar stenosis;    Spine;   

Others  :  1133145
DOI  :  10.1186/1477-5751-13-13

 received in 2014-02-18, accepted in 2014-07-29,  发布年份 2014

【 摘 要 】

Background

Corticoids have potent anti-inflammatory effects, which may help in relieving pain and dysfunction associated with lumbar canal stenosis. We assessed the effectiveness of a decreasing-dose regimen of oral corticoids in the treatment of lumbar canal stenosis in a prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial.

Results

Sixty-one patients with lumbar canal stenosis (50–75 years; canal area < 100 mm² at L3/L4, L4/L5, and/or L5/S1on magnetic resonance imaging; and claudication within 100 m were electronically randomized to an oral corticoid group (n = 31) or a placebo group (n = 30). The treatment group received 1 mg/kg of oral corticoids daily, with a dose reduction of one-third per week for 3 weeks. Patients and controls were assessed by the Short Form 36 Health Survey, Roland–Morris Questionnaire, 6-min walk test, visual analog scale, and a Likert scale. All instruments showed similar outcomes for the corticoid and placebo groups (P > 0.05). Obese patients exhibited more severe symptoms compared with non-obese patients. L4/L5 stenosis was associated with more severe symptoms compared with stenosis at other levels.

Conclusion

The oral corticoid regimen used in this study was not effective in the treatment of lumbar canal stenosis.

【 授权许可】

   
2014 Rodrigues and Natour; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

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