Table 1.
Summary of articles included in the review
| Article | Year | Level of evidence | MINORS score | Number of patients undergoing lumbar discectomy | Mean age (years) | Sport | Number of patients with successful return to sport (%) | Mean recovery time (months) | Length of career postoperatively (number of games) | Length of career postoperatively (years) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Schroeder et al. [17] | 2013 | Level III retrospective cohort study | 17/24 | 48 | NR | NHL | 38 (79%) | NR | 129.6 | 2.6 |
| Yoshimoto et al. [29] | 2013 | Level IV case series | 9/16 | 7 | 20.9 | Multiple | 7 (100%) | 2.75 | NR | NR |
| Earhart et al. [8] | 2012 | Level III retrospective cohort study | 15/24 | 40 | 32.4 | MLB | 39 (98%) | 8.7 | 232.8 | 4.8 |
| Watkins et al. [23] | 2012 | Level IV case series | 8/16 | 85 | 28.1 | Multiple | 67 (89%)* | 5.8 | NR | NR |
| Hsu et al. [10] | 2011 | Level III retrospective cohort study | 15/24 | 226 | NR | Multiple | 184 (81%) | NR | NR | 3.3 |
| Weistroffer et al. [28] | 2011 | Level IV case series | 8/16 | 52 | 27.1 | NFL | 42 (81%) | NR | 33 | 3 |
| Anakwenze et al. [2] | 2010 | Level III retrospective case-control | 13/24 | 24 | 27.8 | NBA | 18 (75%) | NR | 20.1 fewer games in next season | NR |
| Hsu [9] | 2010 | Level III retrospective cohort study | 16/24 | 96 | 27.5 | NFL | 75 (78%) | NR | 36 | 3.1 |
| Watkins et al. [24] | 2003 | Level IV case series | 11/16 | 60 | 26.8 | Multiple | 53 (88%) | 5.2 | NR | NR |
| Wang et al. [19] | 1999 | Level IV case series | 9/16 | 10 | NR | Multiple | 9 (90%) | NR | NR | NR |
* Ten players in Watkins et al. [23] retired from sports as a result of reasons unrelated to lumbar disc herniation and were not included in return-to-play percentages; MINORS = Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies; NR = not reported; NHL = National Hockey League; MLB = Major League Baseball; NFL = National Football League; NBA = National Basketball Association.