Functional somatic syndromes have been associated with worse outcomes, but the impact of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) remains unclear. Is IBS associated with perioperative complications following thoracolumbar spinal fusion? The 2021-2022 National Inpatient Sample was reviewed for adult with and without IBS undergoing elective thoracolumbar fusion surgery. Demographics, comorbidities, surgical factors, and postoperative outcomes were compared by IBS status. Logistic regression assessed the association between IBS and undergoing fusion after controlling for comorbidity and sociodemographic factors. Propensity score matching of pre- and intraoperative variables compared perioperative complications by IBS diagnosis. Among 68,169 fusion patients, 2.1% had IBS. IBS patients were predominantly female (81.0% vs 53.7%, p3 days) (1.23, 95% CI1.06, 1.43, p=0.006). IBS was associated with increased surgical utilization, greater comorbidity, and modestly worse inpatient postoperative outcomes. These patients demonstrated higher rates of nutritional deficiency and gastrointestinal complications, potentially due to dietary restrictions and inherent gastrointestinal irritability. IBS may represent a risk factor in thoracolumbar fusion and should be considered during preoperative counseling. • IBS was associated with higher odds of thoracolumbar fusion utilization • Nutritional deficiencies were more common with IBS patients • IBS increased odds of postoperative GI complications, mainly ileus • IBS was associated with prolonged length of stay
Izima et al. (Fri,) studied this question.