ACR Appropriateness Criteria® Cervical Neck Pain or Cervical Radiculopathy.

Nontraumatic neck pain is a leading cause of disability, with nearly 50% of individuals experiencing ongoing or recurrent symptoms. Radiographs are appropriate as initial imaging for cervical or neck pain in the absence of "red flag" symptoms or if there are unchanging chronic symptoms; however, spondylotic changes are commonly identified and may result in both false-positive and false-negative findings. Noncontrast CT can be complementary to radiographs for evaluation of new or changing symptoms in the setting of prior cervical spine surgery or in the assessment of extent of ossification in the posterior longitudinal ligament. Noncontrast MRI is usually appropriate for assessment of new or increasing radiculopathy due to improved nerve root definition. MRI without and with contrast is usually appropriate in patients with new or increasing cervical or neck pain or radiculopathy in the setting of suspected infection or known malignancy. Imaging may be appropriate; however, it is not always indicated for evaluation of cervicogenic headache without neurologic deficit. The American College of Radiology Appropriateness Criteria are evidence-based guidelines for specific clinical conditions that are reviewed annually by a multidisciplinary expert panel. The guideline development and revision include an extensive analysis of current medical literature from peer reviewed journals and the application of well-established methodologies (RAND/UCLA Appropriateness Method and Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation or GRADE) to rate the appropriateness of imaging and treatment procedures for specific clinical scenarios. In those instances where evidence is lacking or equivocal, expert opinion may supplement the available evidence to recommend imaging or treatment.

A Comparison of Implants Used in Open-Door Laminoplasty: Structural Rib Allografts Versus Metallic Miniplates.

STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective case-controlled study. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Open-door laminoplasty has been successfully used to address cervical spondylotic myelopathy and ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament. Two common implants include rib allograft struts and metallic miniplates. OBJECTIVE: The goals of this study were to compare outcomes, complications, and costs associated with these 2 implants. METHODS: A retrospective review was done on 51 patients with allograft struts and 55 patients with miniplates. Primary outcomes were neck visual analog scale (VAS) pain scores and Nurick scores. Secondary outcomes included length of the procedure, estimated blood loss, rates of complications, and the direct costs associated with the surgery and inpatient hospitalization. RESULTS: There were no differences in demographic characteristics, diagnoses, comorbidities, and preoperative outcome scores between the 2 treatment groups. Mean follow-up was 27 months. The postoperative neck VAS scores and Nurick scores improved significantly from baseline to final follow-up for both groups, but there was no difference between the 2 groups. The average length of operation (161 vs. 136 min) and number of foraminotomies (2.7 vs. 1.3) were higher for the allograft group (P=0.007 and 0.0001, respectively). Among the miniplate group, there was no difference in complications but a trend for less neck pain for patients treated without hard collar at final follow-up (1.8 vs. 2.3, P=0.52). The mean direct costs of hospitalization for the miniplate group were 15% higher. CONCLUSIONS: Structural rib allograft struts and metallic miniplates result in similar improvements in pain and functional outcome scores with no difference in the rate of complications in short-term follow-up. Potential benefits of using a plate include shorter procedure length and less need for postoperative immobilization. When costs of bracing and operative time are included, the difference in cost between miniplates and allograft struts is negligible.

Four-level minimally invasive lateral interbody fusion for treatment of degenerative scoliosis.

The benefits of anterior interbody arthrodesis in deformity surgery are well known and include load sharing and increased fusion rates. A minimally invasive lateral transpsoas approach to the anterior lumbar spine is a promising alternative to traditional interbody techniques for the treatment of adult degenerative scoliosis. The reported advantages of the minimally invasive lateral transpsoas approach include reduced blood loss and shorter length of stay. However, there are several approach-related complications associated with this technique including injury to the nerves within the abdominal wall leading to abdominal wall paresis, bowel injury, and injury to the lumbar plexus. In this video, we demonstrate the key steps of the minimally invasive lateral retroperitoneal transpsoas technique for interbody fusion in the treatment of adult degenerative scoliosis. The video demonstrates patient positioning, surgical opening, passage through the anatomical safe zone, use of multidirectional EMG to navigate away from the lumbar plexus, placement of the expandable retractor, discectomy, endplate preparation, graft insertion, and wound closure. Special emphasis is placed on the approach. We highlight the relevant nerves passing through the abdominal wall with the aid of a microscope. The video can be found here: http://youtu.be/XU1OujNF8F8.

Mini-open transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion.

The potential advantages of a mini-open transforaminal interbody fusion (TLIF) operation are reduced blood loss, shorter length of stay, and less soft-tissue trauma compared to the standard open technique. Prior reports from our group and others have demonstrated successful outcomes using MIS techniques in lumbar fusion surgery. In this 3D video, we demonstrate the key steps of the mini-open technique for a transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion using an expandable tubular retractor and contralateral percutaneous screw fixation for the treatment of a multiple recurrent disc herniation. The video demonstrates patient positioning, surgical opening with development of the Wiltse plane, placement of the tubular retractor, pedicle screw placement through both a percutaneous technique and a mini-open technique, decompression of the neural elements, graft insertion, and wound closure. The video can be found here: http://youtu.be/LYRU9lbBdNg.

Pathology of spinal ependymomas: an institutional experience over 25 years in 134 patients.

BACKGROUND: Ependymomas constitute approximately 40% of primary intraspinal tumors. Current World Health Organization (WHO) grading may not correlate with observed progression-free survival (PFS). OBJECTIVE: This retrospective study of prospectively collected data examines whether PFS is influenced by the histological grade or by the extent of resection. It also analyzes the usage and effectiveness of postoperative adjuvant radiotherapy. METHODS: We reviewed 134 consecutive patients with ependymomas of all grades. Pathology slides were re-reviewed and the histological grades were confirmed by a single neuropathologist. Postoperative residual or recurrence was evaluated with follow-up magnetic resonance imaging. RESULTS: There were 85 male and 49 female patients, ranging from 10 to 79 (median 41) years of age. Thirty patients had WHO grade I tumors, 101 had grade II tumors, and 3 had grade III tumors. Kaplan-Meier analysis of PFS demonstrated a mean duration of 6 years for grade I, 14.9 years for grade II, and 3.7 years for grade III (P < .001). In grade II ependymomas, mean PFS was 11.2 years with subtotal resection and 17.8 years with gross total resection (P < .01). PFS of patients who underwent subtotal resection was not significantly changed by adjuvant radiotherapy (P < .36). CONCLUSION: Patients with grade II ependymoma have significantly longer PFS than patients with grade I ependymoma. The extent of resection did not affect PFS in grade I ependymoma but it did in grade II. Contrary to its higher grade, WHO grade II ependymoma carries a better prognosis than WHO grade I ependymoma.

Pitfalls of calculating hospital readmission rates based on nonvalidated administrative data sets: : presented at the 2012 Joint Spine Section Meeting: clinical article.

OBJECT: Administrative databases are increasingly being used to establish benchmarks for quality of care and to compare performance across peer hospitals. As proposals for accountable care organizations are being developed, readmission rates will be increasingly scrutinized. The purpose of the present study was to assess whether the all-cause readmissions rate appropriately reflects the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) Medical Center hospital's clinically relevant readmission rate for spine surgery patients and to identify predictors of readmission. METHODS: Data for 5780 consecutive patient encounters managed by 10 spine surgeons at UCSF Medical Center from October 2007 to June 2011 were abstracted from the University HealthSystem Consortium (UHC) using the Clinical Data Base/Resource Manager. Of these 5780 patient encounters, 281 patients (4.9%) were rehospitalized within 30 days of the previous discharge date. The authors performed an independent chart review to determine clinically relevant reasons for readmission and extracted hospital administrative data to calculate direct costs. Univariate logistic regression analysis was used to evaluate possible predictors of readmission. The two-sample t-test was used to examine the difference in direct cost between readmission and nonreadmission cases. RESULTS: The main reasons for readmission were infection (39.8%), nonoperative management (13.4%), and planned staged surgery (12.4%). The current all-cause readmission algorithm resulted in an artificially high readmission rate from the clinician's point of view. Based on the authors' manual chart review, 69 cases (25% of the 281 total readmissions) should be excluded because 39 cases (13.9%) were planned staged procedures; 16 cases (5.7%) were unrelated to spine surgery; and 14 surgical cases (5.0%) were cancelled or rescheduled at index admission due to unpredictable reasons. When these 69 cases are excluded, the direct cost of readmission is reduced by 29%. The cost variance is in excess of $3 million. Predictors of readmission were admission status (p < 0.0001), length of stay (p = 0.0001), risk of death (p < 0.0001), and age (p = 0.021). CONCLUSIONS: The authors' findings identify the potential pitfalls in the calculation of readmission rates from administrative data sets. Benchmarking algorithms for defining hospitals' readmission rates must take into account planned staged surgery and eliminate unrelated reasons for readmission. When this is implemented in the calculation method, the readmission rate will be more accurate. Current tools overestimate the clinically relevant readmission rate and cost.

Cervical artificial disc replacement versus fusion in the cervical spine: a systematic review comparing long-term follow-up results from two FDA trials.

STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review. CLINICAL QUESTION: Does single-level unconstrained, semiconstrained, or fully constrained cervical artificial disc replacement (C-ADR) improve health outcomes compared with single-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in the long-term? METHODS: A systematic review was undertaken for articles published up to October 2011. Electronic databases and reference lists of key articles were searched to identify US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) studies reporting long-term (≥ 48 months) follow-up results of C-ADR compared with ACDF. Non-FDA trials and FDA trials reporting outcomes at short-term or mid-term follow-up periods were excluded. Two independent reviewers assessed the strength of evidence using the GRADE criteria and disagreements were resolved by consensus. RESULTS: Two FDA trials reporting outcomes following C-ADR (Bryan disc, Prestige disc) versus ACDF at follow-up periods of 48 months and 60 months were found (follow-up rates are 68.7% [318/463] and 50.1% [271/541], respectively). Patients in the C-ADR group showed a higher rate of overall success, greater improvements in Neck Disability Index, neck and arm pain scores, and SF-36 PhysicalComponent Scores at long-term follow-up compared with those in the ACDF group. The rate of adjacent segment disease was less in the C-ADR group versus the ACDF group at 60 months (2.9% vs 4.9%). Normal segmental motion was maintained in the C-ADR group. Furthermore, rates of revision and supplemental fixation surgical procedures were lower in the arthroplasty group. CONCLUSIONS: C-ADR is a viable treatment option for cervical herniated disc/spondylosis with radiculopathy resulting in improved clinical outcomes, maintenance of normal segmental motion, and low rates of subsequent surgical procedures at 4 to 5 years follow-up. More studies with long-term follow-up are warranted.

Intracranial angioplasty and stent placement for direct cerebral revascularization of nonacute intracranial occlusions and near occlusions.

OBJECT: The authors reviewed their experience in 7 cases of nonacute intracranial occlusions and near occlusions in which the patients underwent intracranial angioplasty and stent implantation for direct cerebral revascularization. METHODS: Between 2005 and 2008, 4 men and 3 women underwent direct cerebral revascularization of nonacute intracerebral occlusions or near occlusions. Five patients had chronic angiographically documented occlusion and 2 patients had chronic angiographically documented near occlusions. The locations of the treated vessels included 2 supraclinoid internal carotid arteries, 4 middle cerebral arteries, and 1 vertebral artery. Prior to intervention, all patients were symptomatic and experienced strokes ipsilateral to their occlusions. In addition, all patients had clinical or radiographic evidence of ongoing hemodynamic compromise. Five patients underwent successful intracranial angioplasty and stent placement and 2 patients underwent successful intracranial balloon angioplasty alone. The mean time from documented vessel occlusion to treatment was 35 days. All patients had successful revascularization determined using the Thrombolysis in Cerebral Infarction (TICI) scale: TICI Score 3, 2b, and 2a in 4, 2, and 1 patient, respectively, and the mean residual stenosis was 38%. RESULTS: After uneventful technical procedures, 1 patient suffered a perforator vessel stroke and 1 patient suffered a fatal hemorrhage. Mean modified Rankin Scale score of 2 (range 1-5) and mean Glasgow Outcome Scale score of 4 (range 1-6) were achieved during a mean clinical follow-up period of 399 days (range 1-840 days). Asymptomatic restenosis was documented in 4 patients, 1 underwent bypass retreatment, and 1 patient received repeated balloon angioplasty. CONCLUSIONS: Combined intracranial angioplasty and stent placement is a potential treatment option in selected patients for the direct revascularization of nonacute intracranial occlusions and near occlusions. Whether this represents a substantial risk reduction compared with the best medical therapy or a long-lasting treatment option is unknown.

Intraperitoneal underlay ventral hernia repair utilizing bilayer expanded polytetrafluoroethylene and polypropylene mesh.

A prospective study of patients with ventral hernias was undertaken to study the experience with an open intraperitoneal underlay technique utilizing a bilayer prosthetic mesh. From September 1998 to March 2001, 102 patients underwent repair with a bilayer expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE) and polypropylene mesh placed intraperitoneally and fixed in place with full-thickness abdominal muscle wall sutures to achieve a 5-cm underlay of the fascial defect circumferentially. There were 67 females and 35 males ranging in age from 29 to 76 years (mean 53 years). Average patient weight was 207 lb with 64 patients in the obese category. Forty patients presented with recurrent hernias. Mean operative time was 103 minutes with an average diameter hernia defect size of 15 cm. Median hospital stay was 3 days. There was no surgical mortality, and major morbidity occurred in six patients (2 wound infections, one deep vein thrombosis, one myocardial infarction, one pneumonia, and one pulmonary embolus). Mean follow-up is 28 months (range 12-42 months). No recurrence has been found with 100 per cent follow-up to date. No bowel obstruction or enteric fistulas have occurred during the follow-up period. The open intraperitoneal underlay mesh technique can be performed with a zero per cent early recurrence rate. Bilayer prosthetic mesh composed of ePTFE and polypropylene can be safely placed intraperitoneally without causing intestinal obstruction or enteric fistula.