Spine
-
Multicenter Study
Lumbar olisthesis and lower back symptoms in elderly white women. The Study of Osteoporotic Fractures.
A Cross-sectional study. ⋯ Anterolisthesis of 3 mm or more in the lower lumbar spine is relatively common among elderly women but is not correlated with back problems. Retrolisthesis at L3-L4 is associated with increased back pain and impaired back function.
-
An experimental porcine study in which functional lumbar spinal units were tested in compression to failure. Biomechanical, radiographic, magnetic resonance imaging, and histological characteristics are described. ⋯ This study shows that the weakest part of the lumbar spine of the juvenile pig, when compressed, is the growth zone and the junction between the point of insertion of the anulus fibrosus and the vertebra. This location of weakness may explain the high frequency of disc degeneration and "persisting apophysis" seen in the spine of athletes.
-
A prospective study was conducted in 37 patients with cervical spondylosis with incomplete cord injury to assess the role of decompression in these patients. ⋯ Although neurologic improvement after an incomplete spinal cord injury when no bony lesion was present was slow during the first few months after trauma, more than 60% of the patients showed neurologic recovery with a muscle grade higher than 3 at 2-year follow-up. Surgical decompression, however, was associated with immediate neurologic improvement, faster recovery of neurologic function, early mobilization, better long-term neurologic outcome, briefer hospital stays, and fewer complications related to long confinements in bed than was nonoperative treatment.
-
The psychometric properties and clinical use of a battery of physical performance measures were tested on 44 patients with low back pain and 48 healthy, pain-free control subjects. ⋯ The results provide support for the use of these physical performance measures as a complement to patient self-report.
-
The outcome of a herniated disc in patients with cervical myelopathy treated by laminoplasty without discectomy and in those treated conservatively was studied by magnetic resonance imaging. ⋯ The size of the herniated disc in cervical lesions regressed as it does in the lumbar lesions. Laminoplasty for patients with narrowed spinal canals showed favorable surgical results. Therefore, the therapeutic method for cervical disc herniation should be chosen after taking the natural history of the disc herniation into consideration.