Spine
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This is a retrospective study of 250 patients who describe low back pain with pain drawings. A computer application using artificial neural networks was designed to analyze pain drawings and evaluate the contribution of pain sensation to drawing classification. ⋯ Patient-reported pain sensation does not improve classification when quantitatively scoring pain drawings.
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Review Comparative Study
Balloon kyphoplasty and vertebroplasty for vertebral compression fractures: a comparative systematic review of efficacy and safety.
Systematic review and meta-regression. ⋯ There is Level III evidence to support balloon kyphoplasty and vertebroplasty as effective therapies in the management of patients with symptomatic osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures refractory to conventional medical therapy. Although there was a good ratio of benefit to harm for both procedures, balloon kyphoplasty appears to offer the better adverse event profile. These conclusions need to be updated on the basis of the findings of ongoing randomized controlled trials.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Is fusion necessary for surgically treated burst fractures of the thoracolumbar and lumbar spine?: a prospective, randomized study.
A prospective clinical trial was conducted. ⋯ The short-term results of short segmental fixation without fusion for surgically treated burst fractures of the thoracolumbar spine were satisfactory. The advantages of instrumentation without fusion are the elimination of donor site complications, saving more motion segments, and reducing blood loss and operative time.
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Repeated cross-sectional analysis using national Medicare data from the Dartmouth Atlas Project. ⋯ The rate of specific procedures within a region or "surgical signature" is remarkably stable over time. However, there has been a marked increase in rates of fusion, and a coincident shift and increase in cost. Rates of back surgery were not correlated with the per-capita supply of orthopedic and neurosurgeons.
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Comparative Study
Polish cultural adaptation of the Roland-Morris Questionnaire for evaluation of quality of life in patients with low back pain.
Cultural adaptation and cross-sectional psychometric testing. ⋯ The correlation between severity of disease and quality of life, between bending of spine and quality of life, between depression and quality of life, and between activities of daily living and quality of life has been found. According to this study, the RMQ can be used as a valid tool in the assessment of the functional level of patients with lumbar pain and previous lumbar herniation. The RMQ is fast and easy to complete; it is valid, reliable, and sensitive. We recommend the questionnaire to be used in research of quality of life in low back pain.