The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society
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Benign tumors of the vertebrae are generally an uncommon cause for surgery. Complete removal of these tumors requires in most cases extensive surgical technique that consists of generous surgical exposure followed by laminectomy, facetectomy, and sometimes even an instrumented fusion. ⋯ Minimally invasive techniques are a valuable choice for the treatment of benign osseous tumors of the spine. A larger, long-term study is in progress. In the meantime, we suggest surgeons experienced with both open and MIS surgery should consider these techniques.
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Meta Analysis
The fragility of statistically significant findings from randomized trials in spine surgery: a systematic survey.
Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) are the most trustworthy source for evaluating treatment effects, but RCTs of spine surgery interventions often produce discordant results. The Fragility Index is a novel metric to inform about the robustness of statistically significant results. ⋯ Statistically significant results in spine surgery RCTs are frequently fragile. The addition of only a small number of outcome events can completely eliminate significance. Surgeons, researchers, and other evidence users should exercise caution when interpreting the findings from RCTs with low Fragility Index values and applying these results to patient care.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Randomized clinical trial assessing whether additional massage treatments for chronic neck pain improve 12- and 26-week outcomes.
This is the first study to systematically evaluate the value of a longer treatment period for massage. We provide a framework of how to conceptualize an optimal dose in this challenging setting of nonpharmacologic treatments. ⋯ "Booster" doses for those initially receiving 60 minutes of massage should be incorporated into future trials of massage for chronic neck pain.