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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Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) are integral to the assessment of treatment success, but loss to follow-up (attrition) may lead to bias in the results reported. We sought to evaluate the extent, nature and implications of attrition in a long-established, single-centre spine registry. ⋯ Although attrition in this cohort was relatively low, 12-month non-responders displayed distinctive characteristics and their early outcomes were significantly worse than those of 12-month responders. If loss to follow-up is not addressed, treatment success will likely be overestimated, with erroneously optimistic results being reported.
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Combined flexion and compression negatively impact the mechanical integrity of the annulus fibrosus.
To observe the effect of static flexion, in combination with compression, on the intralamellar and interlamellar matrix properties of the annulus fibrosus. ⋯ The current findings suggest that the mechanical properties of the interlamellar and intralamellar matrices are sensitive to flexion, creating an environment that promotes an increased potential for damage to occur.
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Longer hospital length of stay (LOS) has been associated with worse outcomes and increased resource utilization. However, diagnostic and patient-level factors associated with LOS have not been well studied on a large scale. The goal was to identify patient, surgical and organizational factors associated with longer patient LOS for adult patients at a high-volume quaternary spinal care center. ⋯ This large-scale study taking into account diagnostic categories identified several factors associated with patient LOS. Future interventions should target modifiable factors to minimize LOS and guide hospital resource allocation thereby improving patient outcomes and quality of care and decreasing healthcare-associated costs.
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Patient blood management has been recently emphasized to avoid perioperative blood transfusion in AIS surgery. Hydroxyapatite charged collagen sponge (HCS) is a bone substitute material made of collagen and ceramized hydroxyapatite, with associated haemostatic properties. The goal of this study was to assess the impact of HCS in the perioperative blood loss in AIS surgery. ⋯ With 27% reduction in drain volume, hydroxyapatite charged collagen sponge can be considered as a blood salving strategy in AIS surgery. The role of the biomaterial in fusion rate still needs to be further assessed.