Journal of neurosurgery. Spine
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Validation of the baseline severity stratification of objective functional impairment in lumbar degenerative disc disease.
OBJECTIVE The Timed Up and Go (TUG) test is a simple, objective, and standardized method to measure objective functional impairment (OFI) in patients with lumbar degenerative disc disease (DDD). The objective of the current work was to validate the OFI baseline severity stratification (BSS; with levels of "none," "mild," "moderate," and "severe"). METHODS Data were collected in a prospective IRB-approved 2-center study. ⋯ Patients with mild, moderate, and severe OFI had increased leg pain by 0.90 (p = 0.044), 1.54 (p < 0.001), and 1.94 (p < 0.001); increased ODI by 7.99 (p = 0.004), 12.64 (p < 0.001), and 17.13 (p < 0.001); and decreased SF-12 PCS by -2.57 (p = 0.049), -3.63 (p = 0.003), and -6.23 (p < 0.001), respectively. CONCLUSIONS The OFI BSS is a valid measure of functional impairment for use in daily clinical practice. The presence of OFI indicates the presence of significant functional impairment on subjective outcome measures.
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OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to investigate the risk of upper instrumented vertebra (UIV) fractures associated with UIV screw fixation (unicortical vs bicortical) and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) augmentation after adult spinal deformity surgery. METHODS A single-center, single-surgeon consecutive series of adult patients who underwent lumbar fusion for ≥ 4 levels (that is, the lower instrumented vertebra at the sacrum or pelvis and the UIV of the thoracolumbar spine [T9-L2]) were retrospectively reviewed. Age, sex, follow-up duration, sagittal UIV angle immediately postoperatively including several balance-related parameters (lumbar lordosis [LL], pelvic incidence, and sagittal vertical axis), bone mineral density, UIV screw fixation type, UIV PMMA augmentation, and UIV fracture were evaluated. ⋯ UIV bicortical screw fixation increased the risk for UIV fracture (OR 5.39; p = 0.02). CONCLUSIONS Bicortical screw fixation at the UIV is a major risk factor for early UIV compression fracture, regardless of whether a thoracolumbosacral orthosis is used. To reduce the proximal junctional failure, unicortical screw fixation at the UIV is essential in adult spinal deformity correction surgery.
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Comparative Study
Is lumbar facet fusion biomechanically equivalent to lumbar posterolateral onlay fusion?
OBJECTIVE This study was designed with the following research objectives: 1) to determine the efficacy of facet fusion with recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein-2 (rhBMP-2) on an absorbable collagen sponge (ACS) in an ovine lumbar facet fusion model; 2) to radiographically and histologically compare the efficacy of lumbar facet fusion with rhBMP-2/ACS to facet fusion with an iliac crest bone graft (ICBG); and 3) to biomechanically compare lumbar facet fusion with rhBMP-2/ACS to lumbar posterolateral fusion (PLF) with ICBG. METHODS The efficacies of the 3 treatments to induce fusion were evaluated in an instrumented ovine lumbar fusion model. Eight sheep had 10 cm3/side ICBG placed as an onlay graft for PLF at L2-3. ⋯ CONCLUSIONS Both rhBMP-2/ACS and autograft demonstrated 100% efficacy when used for facet fusion in the instrumented ovine model. However, the ICBG PLF treatment group only demonstrated a 50% bilateral fusion rate. Biomechanically, the ICBG PLF and rhBMP-2 Facet groups demonstrated similar stiffness in all 6 loading directions, with the rhBMP-2 Facet group having on average slightly higher stiffness in all directions.
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Comparative Study
Is cervical disc arthroplasty good for congenital cervical stenosis?
OBJECTIVE Cervical disc arthroplasty (CDA) has been demonstrated to be as safe and effective as anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in the management of 1- and 2-level degenerative disc disease (DDD). However, there has been a lack of data to address the fundamental discrepancy between the two surgeries (CDA vs ACDF), and preservation versus elimination of motion, in the management of cervical myelopathy associated with congenital cervical stenosis (CCS). Although younger patients tend to benefit more from motion preservation, it is uncertain if CCS caused by multilevel DDD can be treated safely with CDA. ⋯ In this relatively young group of patients, hybrid-CDA demonstrated significantly more ROM than 3-level ACDF without adjacent-segment disease (ASD) at 2 years' follow-up. Therefore, hybrid-CDA appears to be an acceptable option in the management of CCS. The strategy of motion preservation yielded similar improvements of cervical myelopathy to motion elimination (i.e., ACDF) in patients with CCS, while the theoretical benefit of reducing ASD required further validation.
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OBJECTIVE Lumbar epidural steroid injections (LESIs) are performed for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes for a variety of indications, including low-back pain, the leading cause of disability and expense due to work-related conditions in the US. The steroid agent used in epidural injections is reported to relieve nerve root inflammation, local ischemia, and resultant pain, but the injection may also have an adverse impact on spinal surgery performed thereafter. In particular, the possibility that preoperative epidural injections may increase the risk of surgical site infection after lumbar spinal fusion has been reported but has not been studied in detail. ⋯ The infection risk was not significantly different from controls in patients who underwent lumbar fusion more than 3 months after LESI. CONCLUSIONS Lumbar spinal fusion performed within 3 months after LESI may be associated with an increased rate of postoperative infection. This association was not found when lumbar fusion was performed more than 3 months after LESI.