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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Chronic low back pain (cLBP) is a common health condition worldwide and a leading cause of disability with an estimated lifetime prevalence of 80-90% in industrialized countries. However, we have had limited success in treating cLBP likely due to its non-specific heterogeneous nature that goes beyond detectable anatomical changes. We propose that omics technologies as precision medicine tools are well suited to provide insight into its pathophysiology and provide diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets. Therefore, in this review, we explore the current state of omics technologies in the diagnosis and classification of cLBP. We identify factors that may serve as markers to differentiate between acute and chronic cases of low back pain (LBP). Finally, we also discuss some challenges that must be overcome to successfully apply precision medicine to the diagnosis and treatment of cLBP. ⋯ Omics technologies have identified associations between inflammatory and pain pathways in the pathophysiology of cLBP. However, in order to integrate information across the range of studies, it is important for the field to identify and adopt standardized definitions of cLBP and control patients. Additionally, most papers have applied a single omics method to a sampling of cLBP patients which have yielded limited insight into the pathophysiology of cLBP. Therefore, we recommend a multi-omics approach applied to large global consortia for advancing subphenotyping and better management of cLBP, via improved identification of diagnostic markers and therapeutic targets.
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Vertebral artery occlusion (VAO) is an increasingly recognized complication of cervical spine trauma. However, the management strategy of VAO remains heavily debated. Therefore, the aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the safety of early fusion surgery for traumatic VAO. ⋯ Despite the lack of a concurrent control group with preoperative antiplatelet therapy or endovascular embolization for VAO, our results showed low symptomatic stroke rate (4.5%), high recanalization rate (40.9%), and low mortality rate (0%). Therefore, we believe that the indication for early stabilization surgery as management strategy of asymptomatic VAO might be one of the safe and effective treatment options for prevention of symptomatic cerebral infarction.
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To propose an alternative method of surgical technique to address gibbus deformity in meningomyelocele with open wound simultaneously. ⋯ Ilizarov kyphectomy technique is an alternative procedure that can provide a safe and effactive method to address severe kyphosis deformity with skin breakdown. However, a comparison should be drawn to other procedures, while including more patients with longer follow-up.
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This study aimed to investigate how preoperative motion analysis results affect the postoperative clinical outcomes of patients undergoing surgery for adult spinal deformity (ASD). ⋯ The study highlights that a high preoperative Ant-PT angle in motion analyses is associated with poor clinical outcomes after surgery for ASD. Therefore, it is necessary to observe and consider the dynamic gait pattern related to the compensatory mechanism for sagittal imbalance in the decision-making process for ASD surgery.
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The Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and the Core Outcome Measures Index (COMI) are two commonly used self-rating outcome instruments in patients with lumbar spinal disorders. No formal crosswalk between them exists that would otherwise allow the scores of one to be interpreted in terms of the other. We aimed to create such a mapping function. ⋯ Predictions at the group level were very good and met standards justifying the pooling of data. However, we caution against using individual values for treatment decisions, e.g. attempting to monitor patients over time, first with one instrument and then with the other, due to the lower statistical precision at the individual level. The ability to convert scores via the developed mapping function should open up more centres/registries for collaboration and facilitate the combining of data in meta-analyses.