Background: A significant number of patients who undergo spinal fusion surgery are managed in chronic pain clinics
for low back pain or what is commonly described as failed back surgery syndrome (FBSS). There are a
multitude of reasons for chronic long standing back pain after surgery, and the etiology is often multifactorial
involving both preoperative and postoperative risk factors. In patients with scoliosis, it has been
shown that fusion with Harrington rods extending into the lumbar region is associated with increases
in postoperative back pain, especially with fusions to the L4-L5 region. Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) is a
recognized treatment for this condition after repeat surgery or when conservative treatments have failed.
Case Report: This case report describes the use of SCS with combination therapy in the management of severe low
back pain after thoracolumbar fusion with Harrington rods in a patient with congenital scoliosis. After a
failed trial of conservative medical management, a spinal cord stimulator capable of delivering combination
traditional paresthesia with subperception and burst stimulation was placed. Regarding the choice of SCS
therapy, there is a vast array of choices including traditional paresthesia, paresthesia-free, subperception,
microburst, or combination treatment. The latter is capable of delivering multiple therapies over time
designed to provide more thorough and longer-lasting relief.
Conclusion: Simultaneous traditional paresthesia and subperception waveform therapy might offer superior pain relief
in comparison to therapies utilizing a sing=le waveform. Further studies are needed to evaluate the use of
combination over traditional SCS therapy for the treatment of axial back pain secondary to FBSS.
Key words: Chronic pain, combination therapy, congenital scoliosis, neuromodulation, spinal cord stimulator, spinal fusion
The psychometric properties of the Roland Morris disability questionnaire for patients with chronic mechanical low back pain
