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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Significant progress has been seen in the field of spine in recent years as a consequence of worldwide contributions. However, the national productivity to the field of spine is still unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the national contributions in the field of spine. ⋯ The majority of the spine articles are published by authors from high-income countries while few publications from low-income countries. The United States is the most productive country in the field of spine. However, some European countries may be more productive when normalized to population size.
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In recent years, a marked increase of spinal operations prompted a debate on quality issues. Besides obvious factors, such as the surgical technique, medication safety has been identified as one of the major risk factors for patients undergoing anesthesia and surgery. While the issue has already been addressed by hospital pharmacist and anesthesiologists, the prescription of correct medication remains within the surgeons' responsibility. We, therefore, investigated medication-related errors in spinal instrumentation patients and applied current medication reconciliation strategies. ⋯ Medication safety could be significantly improved by implementation of counter-measures specific to the identified risk factors.
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The risks of drains in spine surgery (e.g., increasing venous plexus bleeding, maintaining CSF leakage, and infections) must be balanced with their benefits (e.g., reduced rate of postoperative hematoma and seroma formation). Little is known about factors that influence surgeons' decision to employ a drain. ⋯ In terms of indication, duration, and safety measures, use of drains in spinal surgery is heterogeneous. The majority of surgeons prefer drains to suction in most cases, except for microdiskectomies, for which only 31% will use a drain. Nearly all colleagues discontinue drains by day 4.
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The purpose was to quantify the structural integrity of annulus fibrosis (AF) after injuries with repair. ⋯ The MPSS can restore the mechanical integrity of the AF after needle puncture. An annular graft along with a MPSS may increase the structural integrity of the AF after a punch injury. As this was an acute animal study, the measurements and results may not directly translate to the human intervertebral disc.