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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To clarify the relationship between operative timing and the early post-operative radiological and clinical outcome after kyphoplasty. ⋯ Kyphoplasty is effective for vertebral height restoration as well as pain relief for both acute, subacute and chronic fractures. However, the achievable correction of the fracture-related local kyphosis decreases significantly after 6 weeks. Therefore, we recommend making a final decision about conservative vs. operative treatment within 6 weeks to ensure better height restoration in surgically treated patients.
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Early disc degeneration (DD) has been thought to be associated with loss of spine stability. However, before this can be understood in relation to back pain, it is necessary to know the relationship between DD and intervertebral motion in people without pain. This study aimed to find out if early-to-moderate DD is associated with intervertebral motion in people without back pain. ⋯ This study found only small, indefinite associations between early-to-moderate DD and intervertebral motion in healthy controls. Motion sharing in the absence of pain was also not related to early DD, consistent with previous control studies. Further research is needed to investigate these relationships in patients.
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To identify specific morphological characteristics in thoracolumbar burst fractures associated with neurological outcome after severe traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI). ⋯ Morphological features of the bony structures involving the spinal canal in thoracolumbar burst fractures with severe TSCI are associated with the chronic neurological outcome and could provide more insight than the AIS clinical grading. The fracture pattern may better reflect the actual level of energy transferred to the spinal cord than distinguishing between low- and high-energy trauma.
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Management of patients with magnetically controlled growth rods amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic.
At the time of writing, we are all coping with the global COVID-19 pandemic. Amongst other things, this has had a significant impact on postponing virtually all routine clinic visits and elective surgeries. Concurrently, the Magnetic Expansion Control (MAGEC) rod has been issued with a number of field safety notices and UK regulator medical device alerts. ⋯ The care of each patient must of course be determined on an individual basis; however, the experience of the authors is that a short delay in scheduled distractions and clinic visits will not adversely impact patient treatment. The authors caution against a gap in distractions of longer than 6 months and emphasise the importance of continued remote patient monitoring to identify those who may need to be seen more urgently.
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This study aimed to evaluate facet joint parameters and osteoarthritis grades, and segmental angular and translational motions among different grades of L5/S1 intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration. ⋯ A positive correlation exists between L5/S1 disc degeneration and facet joint osteoarthritis grades. The facet joint space width decreases significantly with increasing grade of disc degeneration.