Return-to-Play Outcomes After Microscopic Lumbar Diskectomy in Professional Athletes

Background: It has been shown a microscopic lumbar diskectomy (MLD) is effective in getting professional athletes back to their sport after a herniated nucleus pulposus (HNP). There is a need for more information on the time it takes professional athletes to return after surgery. Purpose: To determine average time for return to play and success in returning to play for professional athletes undergoing MLD. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: Between 1996 and 2010, the senior authors treated 171 professional athletes for lumbar HNP. A retrospective review was performed using patient charts, operative reports, team medical records, and internet search. Eighty-five patients were treated with MLD, and 86 patients were treated nonoperatively. This study focused on the return to play of the operatively treated patients. Primary outcome measures were return rate and average return time, considering only patients whose sport is in season at specific postoperative time points. Results: Of surgically treated patients, 89.3% returned to sport. The average time it took operative patients to return to their sport (return time) was 5.8 months. Progressive return data for surgically treated patients showed the percentage of athletes who returned increased from 50% at 3 months to 72% at 6 months to 77% at 9 months and 84% at 12 months. Conclusion: The chance a player returns to play after MLD is 50% at 3 months, 72% at 6 months, 77% at 9 months, and 84% at 12 months. The overall chance of returning to play at any point is 89%.