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Retrospective observational study.

Lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS) has traditionally been evaluated morphologically, there is a paucity of literature on quantitative assessment of LSS. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether intraspinal diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) parameters such as apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) and fractional anisotropy (FA) are useful for assessing LSS.

Quantitative assessment of LSS is challenging.

Study participants comprised five healthy volunteers (mean age, 27.2 years) and 27 patients with LSS (mean age, 58.4 years) who were individually assessed using 3.0 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging. Intraspinal ADC and FA values of 10 intervertebral discs from healthy volunteers and 52 intervertebral discs from LSS patients were measured. Also, intraspinal canal area, Schizas classification (A normal, B mild stenosis, C severe stenosis) and correlations with symptoms were investigated. Clinical symptoms were checked for the presence of low back pain (LBP), intermittenADC and FA values were associated with the Schizas classification, intraspinal canal area, and clinical symptoms, suggesting that ADC and FA may be useful for quantitative assessment of LSS.

A retrospective observational study was performed.

We investigated the relationships between skeletal muscle mass, bone mineral density (BMD), and trabecular bone score (TBS) in patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (VCFs).

The TBS has attracted attention as a measurement of trabecular bone microarchitecture. It is derived from data obtained using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) and is a reported indicator of VCFs, and its addition to the Fracture Risk Assessment Tool increases the accuracy of fracture prediction.

BMD, skeletal muscle mass, and TBS were measured in 142 patients who visited Shimoshizu National Hospital from April to August 2019. Patients were divided into a VCF group and a non-VCF group. Whole-body DXA scans were performed to analyze body composition, including appendicular skeletal muscle mass index (SMI; lean mass [kg]/height [m2]) and BMD. The diagnostic criteria for sarcopenia was an appendicular SMI <5.46 kg/m2. Mubritinib chemical structure A logistic regression analysis was connot identified as a risk factor for VCFs.

Prospective diagnostic imaging study.

The stability of the thoracic and lumbar spine depends significantly on the posterior ligamentum complex (PLC). Therefore, it is essential to diagnose PLC injuries accurately before deciding on a treatment plan for thoracolumbar injury patients. However, the efficacy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in diagnosing PLC remains undetermined.

MRI has become the ultimate tool in diagnosing spine injury cases, as previous literature suggests that it has very high sensitivity and specificity. But this is still controversial and as many surgeons rely on just MRI for selecting the patient for surgery, it becomes important to know the diagnostic accuracy of it.

Patients who sustained injuries from T1 to L3 and required posterior surgery were prospectively studied. The treating surgeon and musculoskeletal radiologist participating in the study reviewed preoperative MRI images to characterize the level(s) of injury and the integrity of the six components of the PLC. These sitivity and specificity of MRI for diagnosing injury of the PLC in this study were lower than those previously reported in the literature. The integrity of the PLC as determined by MRI should not be used in isolation to determine treatment.

The sensitivity and specificity of MRI for diagnosing injury of the PLC in this study were lower than those previously reported in the literature. The integrity of the PLC as determined by MRI should not be used in isolation to determine treatment.

Combination of retrospective and prospective study.

We aimed to compare the clinical outcomes between local fixation surgery and spinopelvic fixation surgery for the treatment of kyphosis secondary to osteoporotic vertebral fractures with spinopelvic malalignment.

The clinical characteristics of patients with rigid kyphosis due to osteoporotic vertebral fracture differ from that of middle-aged patients with vertebral fractures in terms of bone fragility and presence of spinopelvic malalignment. Little is known about the surgical strategies for these deformities, most especially the extent of fusion of vertebra involved.

We analyzed 24 patients with vertebral osteotomy at the level of the fracture and spinal fixation without pelvic fixation (local group), and 22 patients with vertebral osteotomy and pelvic fixation (pelvic group). Radiographic parameters, the incidence of proximal junctional kyphosis (PJK), distal junctional kyphosis (DJK), rod fractures, and the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) were coactures, better spinopelvic alignment and health-related quality of life can be achieved through extensive corrective surgery with pelvic fixation.

This was a prospective, randomized, and double-blind study.

Thoraco-lumbar spine surgery is associated with severe postoperative pain and can cause chronic pain. We aimed to compare the impact of epidural ropivacaine with and without dexmedetomidine on postoperative analgesia after thoracolumbar spine instrumentation wherein an epidural catheter was placed by the surgeon intraoperatively.

Very few studies have reported the use of epidural dexmedetomidine in spine surgeries. When used via the epidural route, dexmedetomidine is safe and efficacious and is associated with reduced rescue analgesia consumption, increased duration of analgesia, reduced pain scores, but not with major hemodynamic adverse effects.

Total 60 American Society of Anesthesiologists I-III adult patients aged 18-65 years who were scheduled to undergo thoraco-lumbar spine instrumentation were randomly allocated into group RD (epidural ropivacaine+dexmedetomidine) or group R (epidural ropivacaine plus saline). We aimed to compare the , in terms of postoperative analgesia and patient satisfaction scores, of epidural ropivacaine plus dexmedetomidine over that of ropivacaine alone in patients undergoing surgery for thoraco-lumbar spine.