Spine
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Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative Study Clinical Trial
Mini-intervention for subacute low back pain: two-year follow-up and modifiers of effectiveness.
Randomized controlled trial. ⋯ Mini-intervention is an effective treatment for subacute LBP. Despite lack of a significant effect on intensity of low back pain and perceived disability, mini-intervention, including proper recommendations and advice, according to the "active approach," is able to reduce LBP-related costs. The perceived risk of not recovering was the strongest modifier of treatment effect. In alleviating pain, the intervention was most effective among the patients with a high perceived risk of not recovering.
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Comparative Study
Systematic correlation of transcranial magnetic stimulation and magnetic resonance imaging in cervical spondylotic myelopathy.
A prospective study over a 3.5-year period involving transcranial magnetic stimulation and magnetic resonance imaging. ⋯ Transcranial magnetic stimulation showed excellent correlation with magnetic resonance imaging findings and can be considered as an effective technique for screening patients for cervical cord abnormalities before magnetic resonance imaging in the clinical setting. The findings in this study have relevant implications in the pathophysiology, management, and health costs of cervical spondylotic myelopathy.
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We used anatomic tracers and immunoreactivity in rats to define dorsal root ganglion neuron populations innervating the lumbar discs in physiologic and inflammatory states. ⋯ We found that most small neurons innervating the disc were CGRP-ir. Furthermore, disc inflammation caused an increase in CGRP-ir neurons but not IB4-binding neurons, suggesting that CGRP-ir, nerve growth factor-dependent neurons are more responsible for discogenic pain.
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Post-traumatic inflammatory response was studied in 11 human cases of acute spinal cord contusion injury. ⋯ Endogenous cells (neurons and microglia) in the human spinal cord, not the blood-borne leukocytes, contribute to the early production of interleukin-1beta, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha in the post-traumatic inflammatory response, and microglia are involved the early response to traumatic axonal injury.