4.1. Limitations
sciatica
Our clinical trial on acute sciatica treatment had limitations that should be addressed. Firstly, using a prospective observational design instead of a randomized controlled trial introduced the potential for selection bias. The absence of a control group made it challenging to compare treatment effectiveness accurately. Including a control group would have enabled a more robust evaluation of endoscopic discectomy, microdiscectomy, and conservative treatments. The study involved 470 patients, but a broader age range (18–79 years) may have influenced the results. Additionally, a loss to follow-up of 39 patients resulted in missing data for statistical analysis, potentially impacting the robustness and generalizability of our findings. Future studies should minimize loss to follow-up and ensure comprehensive data collection. Recognizing these limitations is crucial for interpreting our findings accurately and planning future research in acute sciatica treatment.