Inpatient Outcomes in Dialysis Dependent Patients Undergoing Elective Cervical Spine Surgery for Degenerative Cervical Conditions

Abstract

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study. Objective: To evaluate inpatient outcomes in dialysis dependent patients undergoing elective cervical spine surgery. Methods: A total of 1605 dialysis dependent patients undergoing elective primary or revision cervical spine surgery for degenerative conditions were identified from the National Inpatient sample from 2002 to 2012 and compared to 1 450 642 nondialysis-dependent patients undergoing the same procedures. The National Inpatient Sample is a de-identified database; thus, no institutional review board approval was needed. Results: Dialysis dependence was associated with higher inpatient mortality rates (7.5% vs 1.9%; P