The Use of a Patient Decision Aid in the Choice of Surgery for Herniated Disc

Even though surgery due to lumbar disc herniation (LDH) shows a more rapid relief of pain and recovery, the evidence of surgery being superior to conservative treatment in the long term is inconclusive. Involving patients in the decisions whether or not to have surgery is therefore essential. A small survey performed at our Spine Center however, showed that patients were often not fully involved in this treatment decision. Not being involved might lead patients to decision regret and unnecessary conflicts in the decision-making process. The purpose of this project is therefore to assess the effect of a newly developed patient decision aid (PtDA) to facilitate shared decision making (SDM), when patients choose between surgical or non-surgical treatment for LDH, on SDM, decisional conflict, decision regret and treatment outcomes in a randomized controlled trial. The project is performed at Center of Spine Surgery \& Research, Middelfart. Inclusion and one month follow up is already completed and one year follow-up data currently being collected.