European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society
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The aim of this study was to demonstrate regeneration of intervertebral discs undergoing laser therapy with sagittal relaxation time (T2) mapping after a long-term follow-up. ⋯ In this study, there was a prolongation of T2 indicating regeneration in the nucleus pulposus after laser therapy and these results were found to be consistent with VAS measurements after a long-term follow-up. This study, which demonstrates the quantitative efficacy of laser therapy, indicates that MRG can be more effectively used in the future.
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To describe a case of late-onset deep surgical-site infection (SSI) after posterior lumbar interbody fusion in a patient treated with tocilizumab (TCZ) for rheumatoid arthritis (RA), with emphasis on the clinical symptoms and changes in inflammatory markers such as white blood cell (WBC) count and C-reactive protein (CRP) level. ⋯ As TCZ strongly suppresses inflammatory reactions, detecting deep SSI based on local and systemic findings and laboratory data is quite difficult. Care must be taken regarding SSI when patients treated with TCZ complain of long-lasting LBP after lumbar surgery.
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To propose a new measure, the height for screw index (HSI), as a predictor of C2 nerve dysfunction in patients who have received posterior C1 lateral mass screw (C1LMS) fixation for atlantoaxial instability and to examine whether the HSI scores correlated with the development of C2 nerve dysfunction through retrospective analysis of 104 C1LMS inserted in 52 patients with atlantoaxial instability. ⋯ The HSI score correlates with the development of C2 nerve dysfunction in patients receiving C1LMS fixation for atlantoaxial instability and may be a useful predictor of C2 nerve dysfunction.
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The purpose of this study was to evaluate and compare disability, quality of life and satisfaction outcomes between young people and elderly who were operated on for degenerative lumbar disease. ⋯ Older patients can see substantial clinical improvement after degenerative lumbar disease surgery similar to that obtained in younger patients in terms of quality of life and satisfaction. The improvement in terms of the disability is greater for older patients. Thus, age should not be a contraindication for this procedure.