The prevalence of depressive symptoms before and after surgery and its association with disability in patients undergoing lumbar spinal fusion

Purpose The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalence of depressive symptoms and disability pre-operatively, at 3 months and at 1 year after lumbar spine fusion surgery. Methods Data was extracted from a dedicated lumbar spine fusion register, giving 232 patients (mean age 62 years, 158 females) who had undergone instrumented lumbar spine fusion. The frequency of depressive symptoms and disability was evaluated using the Depression Scale (DEPS) and Oswestry Disability Index (ODI). Results Depressive symptoms were found in 34, 13, and 15 % of the patients pre-operatively, at 3 months and at 1 year after surgery, respectively. The mean DEPS score decreased from 16.2 to 8.6 ( p