During the past five years, fusion operations for the relief of low back and sciatic pain have been performed in twenty-nine cases in the orthopedic service of Dr. E. W. Ryerson at St. Luke's Hospital, Chicago. This group of cases has been closely followed and their analysis, here presented, has been made in the hope of revealing some of the etiologic factors as well as the result of surgical treatment. In many respects the study of this group of cases presenting symptoms of low back disability parallels the recent study made by Hibbs and Swift of the New York Orthopaedic Hospital.1
All of the cases in this series were chronic in nature and treatment was directed along the more conservative lines of removal of foci of infection, manipulation, the use of external supports and, in several instances, prolonged rest in bed with traction applied to the pelvis. The persistent