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8 important items from the AANS Annual Meeting
Spine Surgery Today features eight stories to keep your practice up to date from the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting.
Spine outcome registries display most accurate results at one year postoperatively
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Results of a prospective, longitudinal study showed, despite a correlation between certain outcome measures at the 3-month and 12-month postoperative time points, the discrepancy between the minimum clinical important difference later on was sizable enough to lead researchers to recommend a minimum follow-up period of 12 months. Read more.
Vitamin D deficiency may be associated with higher nonunion rates after fusion for spondylosis
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Adults with spondylosis who underwent elective fusion and were vitamin D deficient had nonfusion rates that were more than double those of patients who underwent fusion for spondylosis and were not vitamin D deficient, according to data presented at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, here. Read more.
Adequate endplate coverage by cervical disc prosthesis may reduce risk of heterotopic ossification
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Data presented here at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting showed endplate coverage by a cervical disc prosthesis was related to the grade of heterotopic ossification patients developed. Less endplate coverage was also statistically significantly correlated to a higher grade of heterotopic ossification. Read more.
Earlier spinal cord stimulation may help offset increased health care utilization and costs
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Results of a retrospective study presented at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, here, showed a longer delay from the time a patient is diagnosed with back pain to when they have a spinal cord stimulator implanted is associated with increased utilization of health care services in the first year after the stimulator is implanted. Read more.
Tailored spinal cord stimulation system improves outcomes, pain relief
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Spinal cord stimulation systems can be tailored to treat patient-specific chronic pain and improve clinical outcomes, according to data presented at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting, here. Read more.
Supplemental fixation may improve stability of burst fractures
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The use of supplemental posterior fixation can improve stability during reconstruction of burst fractures, according to results of a biomechanical study presented at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting. Read more.
Cortical bone trajectory screw fixation can be used in pediatric lumbar spine
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Cortical bone trajectory screw fixation offers a feasible option for the treatment of lumbar spine disorders for the pediatric population, especially for children 8 years of age or older, according to a presenter at the American Association of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting. Read more.
Vancomycin powder may help protect against spinal surgical site infections
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The use of intrawound vancomycin powder can assist in the prevention of surgical site infections in spine surgery; however, the indiscriminate application for all patients undergoing a spinal procedure is not appropriate, according to a results of a study presented here. Read more.