European Spine Journal最新文献

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance and safety of a new hernia blocking system (HBS), implanted after a limited discectomy, to prevent recurrence of lumbar disc herniation.

Methods: Prospective, multicenter (6 sites), cohort clinical investigation. Thirty patients with a postero-lateral disc herniation between L4-S1 and large annular defects (> 6 mm wide), who underwent a limited discectomy and were treated with a new HBS (DISC care, NEOS Surgery S.L.), were included. This article presents details about the investigational device, its surgical technique, intraoperative parameters, and up to 6 months follow-up outcomes. The primary endpoint of the study was to assess the incidence of early symptomatic reherniation. In addition, disc height, leg and back pain (NRS 0-10), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), quality of life (EQ-5D-5L) and device safety, were evaluated.

Clinicaltrials: gov: NCT04188236; date: 27th November 2019.

Results: Thirty patients (43.3% female, 41.7 ± 10.9 years) were implanted with the device under evaluation in a mean of 16 ± 9.6 min. Six months after surgery, no symptomatic reherniation was detected and disc height was maintained in all patients included. All patients had a significant reduction in leg pain (> 2 points in the NRS), 92.9% improved > 15 points in the ODI and 82.6% significantly improved their quality of life (≥ 12 points in EQ VAS score). No product-related serious adverse events nor reoperations occurred.

Conclusions: The implantation of an HBS is a feasible and safe procedure that prevents early disc herniation recurrence in patients at high risk of reherniation.

Objective: To evaluate the modified vertebral bone quality (VBQ) method on the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) T1-weighted (T1w), T2-weighted (T2w), and fat suppression (FS) series in evaluating bone mineral density (BMD) for patients with degenerative lumbar disease.

Methods: We reviewed preoperative data of postmenopausal female patients aged ≥ 50 years hospitalized to undergo lumbar surgery for degenerative lumbar disease with available MRI and dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DEXA). Patients were categorized into three groups according to T-score. The VBQ_CSF score was calculated as the L1-L4 median signal intensity (SI) divided by the L3 CSF SI. One-way analysis of variance was applied to assess the discrepancy between groups. The diagnostic performance of VBQ scores for distinguishing low BMD was analyzed using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis.

Results: The study included 253 patients. T2 VBQ_CSF was significantly different between groups (p < 0.001). The interclass correlation coefficient for inter and intra-rater reliability was 0.767 (95%CI 0.650-0.849) and 0.893 (95%CI 0.834-0.932), respectively. The T2 VBQ_CSF showed moderate correlations with DEXA BMD (r =  - 0.442, p < 0.001). The area under the ROC curve indicated a predictive accuracy of 76%. A sensitivity of 59.0% with a specificity of 87.5% was achieved for distinguishing low BMD by setting the T2 VBQ_CSF cutoff at 0.607.

Conclusion: Compared to the traditional VBQ score, T2 VBQ_CSF is a more promising tool for distinguishing poor bone quality in patients with degenerative lumbar disease. A T2 VBQ_CSF score > 0.607 can identify patients who require additional diagnostic evaluation.

The letter responds to a study on the role of erector spinae muscle quality in surgical decision-making for lumbar spondylolisthesis. It highlights the potential of paraspinal muscle fatty infiltration as a predictive factor, suggesting that early rehabilitation targeting these muscles may reduce the need for surgery. The authors propose improvements for future research, such as using advanced MRI techniques for better fat infiltration assessment, controlling patient activity levels, and incorporating multidimensional imaging analyses with machine learning. These advancements could support more personalized treatment strategies for lumbar spondylolisthesis.

Purpose: To assess the benefits of using the touched vertebra (TV) rule in Lenke classification for thoracic curves of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS).

Methods: A total of 141 AIS patients with thoracic curves determined by Suk classification were divided based on whether the lowest instrumented vertebra (LIV) matched the TV into groups of mTV (n = 84, LIV = TV), TV- (n = 21, LIV above TV), and TV+ (n = 36, LIV below TV) for 5-year follow-up. The radiological parameters were the central sacral vertical line (CSVL)-LIV distance, distal end vertebra rotation, coronal, and sagittal parameters. Complications included adding-on phenomenon, coronal imbalance, and distal junctional kyphosis.

Results: Adding-on phenomenon and coronal imbalance were significantly higher in the TV- group (P = 0.006) and TV + group (P = 0.006), respectively. The distal motion segments were significantly saved in the mTV group (P < 0.001). The CSVL-LIV distance was significantly improved in the mTV group compared to the others during the 5-year follow-up (P = 0.007). The 5-year follow-up CSVL-LIV distance correlated with LIV tilt angle (r = 0.442, P = 0.021) and coronal balance (r = 0.437, P = 0.023).

Conclusions: Selecting the TV as LIV minimizes the loss of the distal mobile segment and reduces the complications in the thoracic curves of AIS, which produces a more stable LIV on the CSVL. Therefore, TV is an ideal landmark for determining the distal fusion level using the Lenke classification or Suk classification.

Purpose: The SORG-MLA was developed to predict 90-day and 1-year postoperative survival in patients with spinal metastatic disease who underwent surgery between 2000 and 2016. Due to the constant changes in treatment methods, it is essential to perform temporal validation with a recent patient population. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to validate the Skeletal Oncology Research Group machine learning algorithms (SORG-MLA) using a contemporary patient cohort.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study investigated patients who received surgical treatment for spinal metastases between January 2017 and July 2021 in two tertiary care centers in the US. Eighteen input variables needed for the SORG-MLA were collected including primary tumor, Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) Performance Status, and nine preoperative laboratory values. Outcomes were defined as mortality at 90-day and 1-year postoperative. Performance was assessed using calibration, discrimination, overall performance, and decision curve analysis.

Results: In total, 464 patients were included. The validation cohort varied from the development cohort in multiple variables. Despite these differences, the SORG-MLA continued to perform well on calibration, discrimination (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve [AUC] 0.81 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.77-0.86) for 90-day, AUC 0.75 (95% CI, 0.71-0.80) for 1-year), Brier score, and decision curve analyses.

Conclusions: In spite of recent progress in treating spinal metastases, SORG-MLA for survival in patients with spinal metastatic disease continued to perform well on temporal validation. However, updating the models using a contemporary patient cohort and stratifying by primary tumor could further improve the performance.

Purpose: Limited nutrient transport is hypothesized to be involved in intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration. It is widely recognized that the dominant mode of transport of small molecules such as glucose is via diffusion, rather than convection. However, recent findings suggest a role for convection-induced by fast (motion-related) and slow (diurnal) dynamic loading in molecular transport of even such small solutes. The aim of this study was to investigate whether fluid exchange induced by simulated physiological loading (composed of both fast cyclic or slower diurnal loading) can influence the molecular transport of a small molecule through the cartilage endplate (CEP) into the nucleus pulposus (NP) of IVDs.

Methods: The molecular transport of fluorescein through the CEP and into the NP was studied in a bovine CEP/NP explant model and loading was applied by an axial compression bioreactor. The loaded explants (convection and diffusion) were compared to unloaded explants (diffusion alone).

Results: In the initial 24 h, there were no differences between loaded and unloaded explants, indicating that convection did not enhance molecular transport of small solutes over diffusion alone. Notably, after 48 h which corresponds to two complete diurnal cycles of tissue compression, fluid exudation/imbibing and redistribution, the fluorescein concentration was significantly increased in the top and bottom layer of the explant, when compared to the unloaded explant.

Conclusions: Slower diurnal cyclic compression of the IVD might enhance the transport of small molecules into the IVD although it could not be discerned whether this was due to diffusion/convection or a combination.

Purpose: This study determined the prevalence of cauda equina clumping among patients with Schizas grade C or higher central stenosis after decompression and compared the radiographic and clinical outcomes between patients with and without clumping.

Methods: We conducted a single-center retrospective cohort study involving 98 patients who underwent biportal endoscopic spine surgery between January 2019 and June 2022. Based on postoperative magnetic resonance imaging findings, the patients were divided into the clumping (n = 40) and non-clumping (n = 58) groups. Clinical outcomes were assessed using the visual analog scale for back and leg pain, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), and EuroQol 5-Dimension (EQ-5D-5 L) questionnaire at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months postoperatively. Radiographic evaluations included measuring the cross-sectional area of the dural sac preoperatively and 1 month postoperatively using the PACS software.

Results: Postoperative cauda equina clumping was observed in 40.8% of the patients. Despite an average dural sac expansion of approximately 270%, the clumping group exhibited significantly higher radiating pain at 3 and 6 months (p < 0.05) than the non-clumping group. The ODI and EQ-5D scores were worse in the clumping group at 3 months (p < 0.05). At 12 months postoperatively, differences in clinical outcomes between the two groups were not significant. Patients in the clumping group required longer duration of postoperative medication than those in the non-clumping group (p = 0.024).

Conclusion: Post-decompression cauda equina clumping is commonly observed in patients with severe lumbar stenosis and impacts intermediate-term clinical recovery. Although long-term outcomes at 1 year are similar, tailored postoperative care is essential for patients exhibiting clumping to effectively manage prolonged symptoms.

Purpose: Cauda Equina Syndrome (CES) is a rare surgical emergency. The implications for loss of quality of life through delayed management are high, though no clinical symptom is pathognomonic in its diagnosis. We describe how machine learning based algorithms can be used in triaging patients with suspected CES (CES-S).

Methods: Data of 499 patients who underwent MRI scan for CES-S was collected for demographics, red flag symptoms and radiological outcome. The dataset was used to train the machine learning algorithm in predicting MRI-derived diagnosis of CES. In the testing phase output predictions and Confidence of Prediction (CoP) were recorded for each case and further analysed.

Results: Of 499 patients, 12 (2.4%) had positive radiological outcomes for CES. Patients were divided into two subgroups based on their CoP: high (< 0.9) and low (< 0.9). High CoP was observed in 482 (96.6%) cases. In this group all predictions were correct: 476 negative and 6 positives. Low CoP was observed in 17 (3.4%) cases, of which 6 predictions were incorrect - false negatives. Performing MRI scans only in cases with high CoP positive predictions and all low CoP cases would reduce scans to 5% of the original number.

Conclusion: With our dataset, the trained algorithm demonstrated the potential for safely reducing the number of emergency MRI scans by over 95%. Prior to the wide clinical application, large volume prospective data is needed for continuous training of the algorithm, in order to improve accuracy and confidence of prediction.