Spine
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Retrospective national database analysis. ⋯ This national study demonstrated that the early resident academic year was associated with a greater length of stay among July patients in teaching hospitals. This study did not demonstrate an increase in mortality or total hospital costs among July patients in either hospital cohort. In teaching hospitals, ACF-treated patients in July were associated with a greater incidence of postoperative thromboses and surgical site infection. In addition, the incidence of dysphagia was significantly greater among July patients in teaching hospitals than nonteaching hospitals.
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A biomechanical calf cadaver study. ⋯ In a calf model, a distraction force of up to 800 N leads to no additional reduction of the pressure gradient of bridged healthy lumbar segments under flexion and extension moments.
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Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Do manual therapies help low back pain? A comparative effectiveness meta-analysis.
Meta-analysis methodology was extended to derive comparative effectiveness information on spinal manipulation for low back pain. ⋯ Meta-analyses can extract comparative effectiveness information from existing literature. The relatively small portion of outcomes attributable to treatment explains why past research results fail to converge on stable estimates. The probability of treatment superiority matched a binomial random process. Treatments serve to motivate, reassure, and calibrate patient expectations--features that might reduce medicalization and augment self-care. Exercise with authoritative support is an effective strategy for acute and chronic low back pain.