Safety profile of outpatient vs inpatient ACDF: An analysis of 33,807 outpatient ACDFs

Introduction: Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is commonly performed to treat symptomatic cervical spondylolysis. Recently, many spine surgeons have begun performing ACDF in the outpatient setting. However, as this is a relatively new trend, many studies are either outdated or have small sample populations. The aim of this study was to evaluate outcomes following elective outpatient ACDF in comparison to those performed in the inpatient setting. Methods: Patients in Mariner Claims Database (2011-2017) undergoing outpatient elective ACDF were propensity score matched using age, gender and comorbidity burden. Chronic and peri-operative complications were assigned based on medical claims codes. All outcomes of interest were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression and compared to those undergoing inpatient ACDF. Significance was defined as p < 0.05 and adjusted with Bonferroni correction. Results: Outpatient surgery had significantly lower risk of dysphagia within 24 h in both single (OR 0.44, p < 0.001) and multilevel ACDF (OR 0.48, p < 0.001). Patients undergoing outpatient procedures also have lower risk of 90-day minor (Single OR 0.64, p < 0.001; Multilevel OR 0.52, p < 0.001) and major (Single OR 0.48, p < 0.001; Multilevel OR 0.57, p < 0.001) medical complications. Outpatient procedures were also associated with decreased hospital resource utilization with a noted lower risk of subsequent hospital readmission (Single OR 0.71, p < 0.001; Multilevel OR 0.60, p < 0.001) and ER visits (Single OR 0.84, p < 0.001; Multilevel OR 0.87, p < 0.001). Conclusion: Outpatient single and multilevel ACDF may be performed safely in properly selected patients. Since there are relatively low rates of readmission and significant complications within the days following outpatient ACDF, many surgeons should consider transitioning carefully selected patients to an outpatient setting.

Automated summary

The study found that outpatient ACDF procedures are associated with lower risks of complications such as dysphagia within 24 hours, minor and major medical complications within 90 days, and reduced hospital resource utilization, including readmissions and emergency room visits. Surgeons should consider carefully selected patients for outpatient ACDF procedures based on these findings.