Comparison of demographic data between the 2 study groups.
| Data | ES (n = 30) | Placebo (n = 30) | P |
| Sex, n (%) | |||
| Men | 13 (43.33) | 10 (33.33) | 0.59 |
| Women | 17 (56.67) | 20 (66.67) | |
| Age, y, mean (SD) | 49 (15) | 53 (12) | 0.27 |
| Weight, kg, mean (SD) | 68 (10) | 65 (10) | 0.27 |
| Height, cm, mean (SD) | 164 (9) | 161 (8) | 0.14 |
| BMI, mean (SD) | 25.35 (3.36) | 25.20 (3.22) | 0.86 |
| Surgical level, n (%) | |||
| L3/L4 | 4 (13.33) | 2 (6.67) | 0.561 |
| L4/L5 | 17 (56.67) | 16 (53.3) | |
| L5/S1 | 9 (30) | 12 (40) | |
| Operative time, min, mean (SD) | 116 (27) | 112 (34) | 0.63 |
| Preoperative CRP, mean (SD) | 2.8 (3.2) | 3 (8) | 0.89 |
| Preoperative score, mean (SD) | |||
| VAS back pain | 6.4 (3.3) | 5 (4.1) | 0.15 |
| VAS leg pain | 7.7 (2.3) | 7.8 (2.5) | 0.83 |
| ODI | 54 (14) | 60 (17) | 0.12 |
Abbreviations: BMI, body mass index; CRP, C-reactive protein; ES, epidural steroid; ODI, Oswestry Disability Index; VAS, visual analog score.