LAUSR

BACKGROUND Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) has been frequently used to enhance bone regeneration. A meta-analysis was conducted to systematically assess the fusion rate and pain relief of applying PRP in spinal fusion surgery. METHODS Studies investigating spinal fusion surgery combined with PRP procedure were retrieved from Medline and Web of Science according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. Quality evaluation was conducted using the Cochrane collaboration tool for randomized controlled trials and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale quality assessment for cohort trials. Statistics were managed using RevMan 5.3. RESULTS A total of 12 studies，including 3 randomized controlled trials and 9 cohort studies, with 661 patients were enrolled in this meta-analysis. The mean age was 52.3±8.0 years. The over pooled results demonstrated that there was no statistically significant difference in fusion rates between PRP and non-PRP treatment groups. The risk ratio was 1.01 (95% confidence intervals (95%CIs): 0.95-1.06, p=0.83). There was no significant difference in pain relief as measured by the Visual Analog Scale between the two groups. The mean difference was -0.08 (95% CIs:-0.26 - 0.11, p=0.42). CONCLUSION Adding PRP could not increase fusion rates in spinal fusion surgery. Meanwhile, there was no significant difference in pain relief between PRP and non-PRP treatment groups.