Journals / Hitit Medical Journal / 2026 / Cilt: 8 Sayı: 2

Plug-shaped Autologous Fat Graft Repair for Dural Tear in Lumbar Spine Surgery

Lomber Omurga Cerrahisinde Dural Yırtığın Tıkaç Şeklinde Otolog Yağ Grefti ile Onarımı

Fatih Yakar(Pamukkale Üniversitesi)0000-0001-7414-3766
Emrah Egemen(PAMUKKALE ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0000-0003-4930-4577
Pages
377–385
Publication Date
2026-06-29
🏛️Bibliographic metadata and full text access for this article are provided via DergiPark.
DergiPark Record ↗
✨

AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

Revision surgery was associated with an increased risk of dural tear.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of patients undergoing lumbar spine surgery who developed intraoperative dural tear and were treated with plug-shaped autologous fat graft repair, and to compare these outcomes with those of patients without dural injury.
📊
Key Findings & Data:Materials and Methods This retrospective, single-center study included 124 patients who underwent surgery for lumbar disc herniation or lumbar spinal stenosis between 2019 and 2025.
💡
Conclusion & Impact:Revision surgery was associated with an increased risk of dural tear.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:2019 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Dural yırtık · Lomber disk hernisi · Lomber spinal stenoz

Abstract

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes of patients undergoing lumbar spine surgery who developed intraoperative dural tear and were treated with plug-shaped autologous fat graft repair, and to compare these outcomes with those of patients without dural injury. Materials and Methods This retrospective, single-center study included 124 patients who underwent surgery for lumbar disc herniation or lumbar spinal stenosis between 2019 and 2025. All procedures were performed by a single surgeon using a posterior midline approach under general anesthesia. In cases of dural tear, the defect was repaired using a plug-shaped autologous fat graft without primary suturing. Clinical outcomes were assessed using preoperative and postoperative Visual Analog Scale (VAS) scores. Statistical analyses were performed to evaluate associations between dural tear, recurrence, gender, surgical side, and clinical outcomes. Results Dural tear occurred in 8 patients (6.4%). After exclusion of recurrent cases, the incidence decreased to 4.3%. The risk of dural tear was significantly higher in patients reoperated for recurrent lumbar disc herniation (p = 0.013). No cerebrospinal fluid leakage was observed in patients treated with plug-shaped autologous fat graft repair. Postoperative VAS improvement did not differ significantly between patients with and without dural tear, although numerical improvement was greater in the dural tear group. Gender, surgical side, and surgeon hand dominance were not significantly associated with dural tear occurrence. Conclusion Plug-shaped autologous fat graft repair effectively prevented cerebrospinal fluid leakage in patients with intraoperative dural tear during lumbar spine surgery. Despite dural injury, postoperative pain outcomes were preserved. Revision surgery was associated with an increased risk of dural tear.

Özet

Amaç Bu çalışmanın amacı, lomber omurga cerrahisi sırasında intraoperatif dural yırtık gelişen ve tıkaç şeklinde otolog yağ grefti ile onarım uygulanan hastaların klinik sonuçlarını değerlendirmek ve bu sonuçları dural yaralanma gelişmeyen hastalarla karşılaştırmaktır. Gereç ve Yöntem Bu retrospektif, tek merkezli çalışmaya 2019–2025 yılları arasında lomber disk hernisi veya lomber spinal stenoz nedeniyle opere edilen 124 hasta dahil edildi. Tüm cerrahi girişimler genel anestezi altında, posterior midline yaklaşım kullanılarak tek cerrah tarafından gerçekleştirildi. İntraoperatif dural yırtık saptanan olgularda defekt, primer sütür uygulanmaksızın tıkaç şeklinde otolog yağ grefti ile onarıldı. Klinik sonuçlar ameliyat öncesi ve sonrası Görsel Analog Skala (VAS) skorları ile değerlendirildi. Dural yırtık gelişimi ile rekürrens, cinsiyet, cerrahi taraf ve klinik sonuçlar arasındaki ilişkiler istatistiksel olarak analiz edildi. Bulgular Toplam 8 hastada (%6,4) intraoperatif dural yırtık gelişti. Rekürren olguların dışlanması sonrasında insidans %4,3 olarak hesaplandı. Rekürren lomber disk hernisi nedeniyle yeniden opere edilen hastalarda dural yırtık gelişme riski anlamlı derecede daha yüksekti (p = 0,013). Tıkaç şeklinde otolog yağ grefti ile onarım uygulanan hastalarda postoperatif dönemde beyin omurilik sıvısı (BOS) kaçağı gözlenmedi. Postoperatif VAS skorlarındaki iyileşme, dural yırtık gelişen ve gelişmeyen hastalar arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı farklılık göstermedi (p> 0,05). Bununla birlikte, VAS skorlarındaki sayısal iyileşme dural yırtık gelişen hasta grubunda daha yüksek bulundu. Cinsiyet, cerrahi taraf ve cerrahın el dominansı ile dural yırtık gelişimi arasında anlamlı bir ilişki saptanmadı. Sonuç Lomber omurga cerrahisi sırasında gelişen intraoperatif dural yırtıkların tıkaç şeklinde otolog yağ grefti ile onarımı, BOS kaçağını etkin biçimde önlemiştir. Dural yaralanmaya rağmen postoperatif ağrı sonuçlarının olumsuz etkilenmediği, hatta sayısal olarak daha fazla iyileşme izlendiği görülmüştür. Revizyon cerrahisi, dural yırtık gelişimi açısından artmış risk ile ilişkilidir.

🔖

Cite This Article

Yakar, F., Egemen, E. (2026). Plug-shaped Autologous Fat Graft Repair for Dural Tear in Lumbar Spine Surgery. Hitit Medical Journal, Cilt: 8 Sayı: 2, 377–385. https://doi.org/10.52827/hititmedj.1890510

📄 Full Text PDF Viewer

📄

PDF görüntüleyici hazırlanıyor...

References (16)

  1. Albayrak S, Ozturk S, Ayden O, Ucler N. Dural Tear. A Feared Complication of Lumbar Discectomy. Turk Neurosurg 2016;26(6):918-921.
  2. Luszczyk MJ, Blaisdell GY, Wiater BP, et al. Traumatic dural tears: What do we know and are they a problem? Spine J 2014;14:49-56.
  3. Baker GA, Cizik AM, Bransford RJ, et al. Risk factors for unintended durotomy during spine surgery: a multivariate analysis. Spine J 2012;12(2):121-126.
  4. Buck JS, Yoon ST. The Incidence of Durotomy and its Clinical and Economic Impact in Primary, Short-segment Lumbar Fusion: An Analysis of 17,232 Cases. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 2015;40(18):1444-1450.
  5. Erdoğan U, Akpinar A. Clinical Outcomes of Incidental Dural Tears During Lumbar Microdiscectomy. Cureus 2021;13(4):e14360.
  6. Chabok SY, Safaie M, Ashraf A, et al. Effect of Fat Graft on Dural Tear Repair in Lumbar Spine Laminectomy Surgery. Neurosurgery Quarterly 2014;24(1):1-4.
  7. Bosacco SJ, Gardner MJ, Guille JT. Evaluation and treatment of dural tears in lumbar spine surgery: A review. Clin Orthop Relat Res 2001;389:238-247.
  8. Wang JC, Bohlman HH, Riew KD. Dural tears are secondary to operations on the lumbar spine. Management and results after a two-year-minimum follow-up of eighty-eight patients. J Bone Joint Surg Am 1998;80(12):1728-1732.
  9. Cammisa FP Jr, Girardi FP, Sangani PK, et al. Incidental durotomy in spine surgery. Spine (Phila Pa 1976) 2000;25(20):2663-2667.
  10. Black P. Cerebrospinal fluid leaks following spinal surgery: use of fat grafts for prevention and repair: Technical note. J Neurosurg 2002;96:250-252.
  11. Patel MR, Caruso PA, Yousuf N, Rachlin J. CT-guided percutaneous fibrin glue therapy of cerebrospinal fluid leaks in the spine after surgery. AJR Am J Roentgenol 2000;175(2):443-446.
  12. Seeberger MD, Urwyler A. Lumbovertebral syndrome after extradural blood patch. Br J Anaesth 1992;69:414-416.
  13. Woodward WM, Levy DM, Dixon AM. Exacerbation of post-dural puncture headache after epidural blood patch. Can J Anaesth 1994;41:628-631.
  14. Shapiro SA, Scully T. Closed continuous drainage of cerebrospinal fluid via a lumbar subarachnoid catheter for treatment or prevention of cranial/spinal cerebrospinal fluid fistula. Neurosurgery 1992;30:241-245.
  15. Esposito F, Dusick JR, Fatemi N, Kelly DF. Graded repair of cranial base defects and cerebrospinal fluid leaks in transsphenoidal surgery. Oper Neurosurg 2007;60(4 Suppl 2):295-303; discussion 303-304.
  16. Mayfield FH. Autologous fat transplants for the protection and repair of the spinal dura. Clin Neurosurg 1980;27:349-361.