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W C Peul
Dr W C Peul, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands; w.c.peul@lumc.nl
STUDY DESIGN
Design:
randomised controlled trial.
Allocation:
{concealed}*.†
Blinding:
unblinded.†
STUDY QUESTION
Setting:
9 hospitals in the Netherlands.
Patients:
283 patients 18–65 years of age (mean age 43 y, 66% men) who had 6–12 weeks of sciatica diagnosed by a neurologist, disc herniation with nerve root compression confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging, and pain distribution and neurological disturbances correlated to the same nerve root. Exclusion criteria included cauda-equina syndrome, severe paresis, same complaints within 12 months, and history of spinal surgery, spinal stenosis, deformity, or severe comorbidity.
Intervention:
early surgery (n = 141), which included removal of disc herniation using a unilateral transflaval approach and removal of loose degenerated disc material, or conservative care (n = 142) provided by family …
Footnotes
Source of funding: Netherlands Organisation for Health Research and Development and Hoelen Foundation, The Hague.