Objective: To evaluate the clinical study efficacy and feasibility of 17 aged patients with lumbo-sacral tuberculosis treated by one-stage posterior transforaminal lumbar debridement, interbody fusion, and posterior instrumentation.

Methods: 17 aged patients who suffered from lumbo-sacral tuberculosis were admitted into our hospital between March 2003 and October 2010. All of them were treated by one-stage posterior transforaminal lumbar debridement, interbody fusion, and posterior instrumentation. Then the clinical efficacy with statistical analysis was evaluated based on the materials on the lumbo-sacral angle, neurological status that was recorded by Frankel grade system, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), which were collected at certain time.

Results: The average follow-up period was 47.5 ± 17.1 months (17-71 months), In the 17 cases, no postoperative complications related to instrumentation occurred and neurologic function was improved in various degrees. The mean preoperative lumbo-sacral angle was 20.5° ± 1.7° (range 18.0°-23.0°). The lumbo-sacral angle became 29.1° ± 1.5° (range 26.4°-31.0°) postoperatively. The average pretreatment ESR was 57.4 ± 16.8 mm/h (33-95 mm/h), which got normal (9.2 ± 3.1 mm/h) within 3 months in all patients. All patients got bony fusion within 6-8 months after surgery.

Conclusions: One-stage posterior transforaminal lumbar debridement, interbody fusion, and posterior instrumentation can be an effective treatment method for the treatment of lumbo-sacral tuberculosis in the aged patients.