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A new study has revealed that about 20 percent of those who undergo low back fusion surgery develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, associated with that surgery.

The Oregon Health & Science University study is published in the journal Spine.

Previous studies have revealed PTSD symptoms in cases when patients undergo some sort of a trauma, cancer and organ transplant, etc. However, this is the first study to have pointed out such symptoms in patients who undergo an elective medical procedure.

"It is maybe not surprising that significant surgical interventions have psychological as well as physical impacts," said Robert Hart, M.D., an orthopedic surgeon, professor of orthopedics and rehabilitation at OHSU and senior author of the study, according to Medical Xpress. "I think it means that we in the medical community need to monitor for these effects in our patients and to manage them when they occur."

According to the study, the strongest factors indicating if the patient would suffer PTSD after the surgery would be, if the patient suffers some sort of psychiatric disturbance like depression or anxiety disorders before the surgery. However, these pre-surgery symptoms cannot be completely relied upon, since some patients also suffer PTSD in spite of not showing any such psychological disturbance before surgery, the current study has found.  

For the current study, the researchers observed 73 surgical patients who underwent lumbar spinal fusion surgery, a procedure in which two or more lumbar vertebrae in the back are fused together, usually including implantation of metal screws and rods as part of the procedure, the report said.

A spinal fusion is often major surgery that may involve complications apart from a long recovery period. The study found that most of the patients involved in the study reportedly got a lot of relief from pain that they experienced before the surgery.

The findings of the current study, according to Hart, may help doctors and surgeons give proper advice to patients who are going to get the spine surgery done.

Also, those patients at higher risk might be offered treatment by doctors and surgeons prior to the surgery, Hart said.

"At the end of the day, I hope this will make changes in the way we prepare people for surgery, to reduce these psychological impacts. This is analogous to how we currently optimize patients' physical condition before major surgery," Hart said.