ABSTRACT
Objective: To evaluate the effectiveness of Coflex interspinous dynamic internal fixation combined with spinal fusion for lumbar disc degeneration. Methods: The clinical data of 39 patients with two-level lumbar disc degeneration who met the selection criteria between June 2010 and December 2011 was retrospectively analyzed. They were divided into group A (20 cases, simple lumbar decompression and fusion) and group B (19 cases, Coflex interspinous dynamic internal fixation combined with spinal fusion) according to different surgical methods. There was no significant difference in age, gender, disease diagnosis, lesion segment, disease duration, Oswestry disability index (ODI), visual analogue scale (VAS) score, and the intervertebral height, foramen intervertebral height (FIH), and range of motion (ROM) of upper operative segment and adjacent segment between the two groups ( P>0.05). ODI and VAS score were used to evaluate the effectiveness before operation and at last follow-up, and the improvement rates were calculated. The intervertebral height [anterior disc height (ADH), middle disc height (MDH), and posterior disc height (PDH)], FIH, and ROM were measured and compared between the two groups. Results: The operation time and intraoperative blood loss in group A were significantly more than those in group B ( P0.05); the improvement rate of VAS score in group B was significantly higher than that in group A ( t=2.245, P=0.031). There was no significant difference in the intervertebral height and FIH of the upper operative segment at last follow-up between the two groups and between preoperation and last follow-up in the two groups ( P>0.05). At last follow-up, the ADH of adjacent segment in group B was significantly higher than that in group A, and MDH, PDH, and FIH were significantly lower than those in group A ( P0.05). The ROM of adjacent segment in group A increased significantly at last follow-up ( t=2.318, P=0.026). There was significant difference in ROM of adjacent segment between the two groups ( P<0.05). Conclusion: The mid-term effectiveness of Coflex interspinous dynamic internal fixation combined with spinal fusion is similar to that of simple decompression fusion. For those patients whose adjacent segments of the responsible segments have degeneration but have no symptoms or mild symptoms, this treatment can slow down the adjacent segment degeneration.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND:cells under mechanical stimulation can achieve their biological functions by converting mechanical signals into chemical signals through certain signal transduction mechanism. As the fibrous framework throughout a cell, cytoskeleton is one of the critical components in this process. OBJECTIVE:Through systemical y analyzing the role of the cytoskeleton in mechanical signal transduction, to provide a potential therapeutic target for the clinical treatment of cytoskeleton related diseases. METHODS:In order to search relevant articles about the mechanics mechanism of signal transduction of cytoskeleton from PubMed and CNKI databases (from 1990 to 2012), a computer-based search was performed, using the key words of“cytoskeleton, microtubules, microfilaments, intermediate filaments, mechanical stimulation, signal transduction”in English and Chinese, respectively. After eliminating literatures which were irrelevant to research purpose or containing a similar content, 48 articles were chosen for further analysis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION:Mechanical stimulation plays an important role in cellproliferation, development and apoptosis. With the gradual understanding of the biological function of cytoskeleton, people have found that cytoskeleton is one of the critical components in the process of the mechanical signal transduction. After getting mechanical stimulation, cytoskeleton can be reorganized through Rho, protein kinase C, integrin and mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling pathways, then converting the mechanical stimulation to chemical signals and finishing its biological functions final y.