Faculty Bibliography

BACKGROUND:Studies have utilized psychological questionnaires to identify the psychological distress among certain surgical populations. RESEARCH QUESTION/OBJECTIVE:Is there an additional psychological burden among patients undergoing surgical treatment for their symptomatic degenerative cervical disease? MATERIALS AND METHODS/METHODS:Patients>18 years of age with symptomatic, degenerative cervical spine disease were included and prospectively enrolled. Correlations and multivariable logistic regression analysis assessed the relationship between these mental health components (PCS, FABQ) and the severity of disability described by the NDI, EQ-5D, and mJOA score. Patient distress scores were compared to previously published benchmarks for other diagnoses. RESULTS:). Increasing neck disability and decreasing EQ-5D were correlated with greater PCS and FABQ(all p<0.001). Patients with severe psychological distress at baseline were more likely to report severe neck disability, while physician-reported mJOA had weaker associations. Compared to historical controls of lumbar patients, patients in our study had greater levels of psychological distress, as measured by FABQ (40.0 vs 17.6;p<0.001) and PCS (27.4 vs 19.3;p<0.001). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Degenerative cervical spine patients seeking surgery were found to have a significant level of psychological distress, with a large portion reporting severe fear avoidance beliefs and catastrophizing pain at baseline. Strong correlation was seen between patient-reported functional metrics, but less so with physician-reported signs and symptoms. Additionally, this population demonstrated higher psychological burden in certain respects than previously identified benchmarks of patients with other disorders. Preoperative treatment to help mitigate this distress, impact postoperative outcomes, and should be further investigated. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE/METHODS:Level III.

Background/UNASSIGNED:Patients with symptomatic cervical deformity (CD) requiring surgical correction often present with hyperkyphosis (HK), although patients with hyperlordotic curves may require surgery as well. Few studies have investigated differences in CD corrective surgery with regard to HK and hyperlordosis (HL). Objective/UNASSIGNED:The objective of the study is to evaluate patterns in treatment for CD patients with baseline (BL) HK and HL and understand how extreme curvature of the spine may influence surgical outcomes. Materials and Methods/UNASSIGNED:Operative CD patients with BL and 1-year (1Y) radiographic data were included in the study. Patients were stratified based on BL C2-C7 lordosis (CL) angle: those >1 standard deviation (SD) from the mean (-6.96 ± 21.47°) were hyperlordotic (>14.51°) or hyperkyphotic (<-28.43°) depending on directionality. Patients within 1SD were considered control group. Results/UNASSIGNED:< 0.001), however, postoperative differences in MGS and C0-C2 were not significant. HK drivers of deformity were primarily C (90%), whereas HL had primary CT (38.1%), UT (23.8%), and C (14.3%) drivers. Conclusions/UNASSIGNED:Hyperlodotic patients trended higher revision rates with greater radiographic malalignment at 1-year postoperative, perhaps due to undercorrection compared to kyphotic etiologies.

BACKGROUND:As corrective surgery for cervical deformity (CD) increases, so does the rate of complications and reoperations. To minimize suboptimal postoperative outcomes, it is important to develop a tool that allows for proper preoperative risk stratification. OBJECTIVE:To develop a prognostic utility for identification of risk factors that lead to the development of major complications and unplanned reoperations. METHODS:CD patients age 18 years or older were stratified into 2 groups based on the postoperative occurrence of a revision and/or major complication. Multivariable logistic regressions identified characteristics that were associated with revision or major complication. Decision tree analysis established cutoffs for predictive variables. Models predicting both outcomes were quantified using area under the curve (AUC) and receiver operating curve characteristics. RESULTS:A total of 109 patients with CD were included in this study. By 1 year postoperatively, 26 patients experienced a major complication and 17 patients underwent a revision. Predictive modeling incorporating preoperative and surgical factors identified development of a revision to include upper instrumented vertebrae > C5, lowermost instrumented vertebrae > T7, number of unfused lordotic cervical vertebrae > 1, baseline T1 slope > 25.3°, and number of vertebral levels in maximal kyphosis > 12 (AUC: 0.82). For developing a major complication, a model included a current smoking history, osteoporosis, upper instrumented vertebrae inclination angle < 0° or > 40°, anterior diskectomies > 3, and a posterior Smith Peterson osteotomy (AUC: 0.81). CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Revisions were predicted using a predominance of radiographic parameters while the occurrence of major complications relied on baseline bone health, radiographic, and surgical characteristics.

OBJECTIVE:Revision surgery is often necessary for adult spinal deformity (ASD) patients. Satisfaction with management is an important component of health-related quality of life. The authors hypothesized that patients who underwent multiple revision surgeries following ASD correction would exhibit lower self-reported satisfaction scores. METHODS:This was a retrospective cohort study of 668 patients who underwent ASD surgery and were eligible for a minimum 2-year follow-up. Visits were stratified by occurrence prior to the index surgery (period 0), after the index surgery only (period 1), after the first revision only (period 2), and after the second revision only (period 3). Patients were further stratified by prior spine surgery before their index surgery. Scoliosis Research Society-22 (SRS-22r) health-related quality-of-life satisfaction subscore and total satisfaction scores were evaluated at all periods using multiple linear regression and adjustment for age, sex, and Charlson Comorbidity Index. RESULTS:In total, 46.6% of the study patients had undergone prior spine surgery before their index surgery. The overall revision rate was 21.3%. Among patients with no spine surgery prior to the index surgery, SRS-22r satisfaction scores increased from period 0 to 1 (from 2.8 to 4.3, p < 0.0001), decreased after one revision from period 1 to 2 (4.3 to 3.9, p = 0.0004), and decreased further after a second revision from period 2 to 3 (3.9 to 3.3, p = 0.0437). Among patients with spine surgery prior to the index procedure, SRS-22r satisfaction increased from period 0 to 1 (2.8 to 4.2, p < 0.0001) and decreased from period 1 to 2 (4.2 to 3.8, p = 0.0011). No differences in follow-up time from last surgery were observed (all p > 0.3). Among patients with multiple revisions, 40% experienced rod fracture, 40% proximal junctional kyphosis, and 33% pseudarthrosis. CONCLUSIONS:Among patients undergoing ASD surgery, revision surgery is associated with decreased satisfaction, and multiple revisions are associated with additive detriment to satisfaction among patients initially undergoing primary surgery. These findings have direct implications for preoperative patient counseling and establishment of postoperative expectations.

STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:Retrospective cohort. OBJECTIVE:To describe the 2-year outcomes for patients undergoing surgical correction of cervical deformity. BACKGROUND:Adult cervical deformity (CD) has been shown to compromise health-related quality of life. While advances in spinal realignment have shown promising short-term clinical results in this parameter, the long-term outcomes of CD corrective surgery remain unclear. METHODS:Operative CD patients >18 years with 2-year (2Y) HRQL/radiographic data were included. Improvement in radiographic, neurologic and HRQL outcomes were reported. Patients with a prior cervical fusion and patients with the greatest and smallest change based on NDI, NRS neck, mJOA were compared using multivariable analysis controlling for age, and frailty, and invasiveness. RESULTS:158 patients were included in this study. By 2Y, 96.3% of patients improved in Ames cSVA modifier, 34.2% in TS-CL, 42.0% in Horizontal gaze modifier, and 40.9% in SVA modifier. Additionally, 65.5% of patients improved in Passias CL modifier, 53.3% in TS-CL modifier, 100% in C2-T3 modifier, 88.9% in C2S modifier, and 81.0% in MGS modifier severity by 2Y. The cohort significantly improved from BL to 2Y in NDI, NRS Neck, and mJOA, all P<0.05. 59.3% of patients met MCID for NDI, 62.3% for NRS Neck, and 37.3% for mJOA. 97 patients presented with at least one neurologic deficit at BL and 63.9% no longer reported that deficit at follow-up. There were 45 (34.6%) cases of DJK (∆DJKA>10° between LIV and LIV-2), of which 17 were distal junctional failure (DJF-DJK requiring reoperation). Patients with the greatest beneficial change were less likely to have had a complication in the 2-year follow-up period. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Correction of cervical deformity results in notable clinical and radiographic improvement with most patients achieving favorable outcomes after two years. However, complications including distal junctional kyphosis or failure remain prevalent.

BACKGROUND:Frailty is influential in determining operative outcomes, including complications, in patients with cervical deformity (CD). OBJECTIVE:To assess whether frailty status limits the highest achievable outcomes of patients with CD. METHODS:Adult patients with CD with 2-year (2Y) data included. Frailty stratification: not frail (NF) <0.2, frail (F) 0.2 to 0.4, and severely frail (SF) >0.4. Analysis of covariance established estimated marginal means based on age, invasiveness, and baseline deformity, for improvement, deterioration, or maintenance in Neck Disability Index (NDI), Modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA), and Numerical Rating Scale Neck Pain. RESULTS:One hundred twenty-six patients with CD included 29 NF, 83 F, and 14 SF. The NF group had the highest rates of deterioration and lowest rates of improvement in cervical Sagittal Vertical Axis and horizontal gaze modifiers. Two-year improvements in NDI by frailty: NF: -11.2, F: -16.9, and SF: -14.6 (P = .524). The top quartile of NF patients also had the lowest 1-year (1Y) NDI (7.0) compared with F (11.0) and SF (40.5). Between 1Y and 2Y, 7.9% of patients deteriorated in NDI, 71.1% maintained, and 21.1% improved. Between 1Y and 2Y, SF had the highest rate of improvement (42%), while NF had the highest rate of deterioration (18.5%). CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Although frail patients improved more often by 1Y, SF patients achieve most of their clinical improvement between 1 and 2Y. Frailty is associated with factors such as osteoporosis, poor alignment, neurological status, sarcopenia, and other medical comorbidities. Similarly, clinical outcomes can be affected by many factors (fusion status, number of pain generators within treated levels, integrity of soft tissues and bone, and deformity correction). Although accounting for such factors will ultimately determine whether frailty alone is an independent risk factor, these preliminary findings may suggest that frailty status affects the clinical outcomes and improvement after CD surgery.

BACKGROUND:Persistent pelvic compensation following adult spinal deformity (ASD) corrective surgery may impair quality of life and result in persistent pathologic lower extremity compensation. Ideal age-specific alignment targets have been proposed to improve surgical outcomes, though it is unclear whether reaching these ideal targets reduces rates of pelvic nonresponse following surgery. Our aim was to assess the relationship between pelvic nonresponse, age-specific alignment, and lower-limb compensation following surgery for ASD. METHODS:Single-center retrospective cohort study. ASD patients were grouped: those who did not improve in Scoliosis Research Society-Schwab pelvic tilt (PT) modifier (pelvic nonresponders [PNR]), and those who improved (pelvic responders [PR]). Groups were propensity score matched for preoperative PT and assessed for differences in spinal and lower extremity alignment. Rates of pelvic nonresponse were compared across patient groups who were undercorrected, overcorrected, or matched age-specific postoperative alignment targets. RESULTS:< 0.05). CONCLUSIONS:For patients with moderate to severe baseline truncal inclination, more aggressive surgical correction relative to ideal age-specific PI-LL was associated with lower rates of pelvic nonresponse. Postoperative alignment targets may need to be adjusted to optimize alignment outcomes for patients with substantial preoperative sagittal deformity. CLINICAL RELEVANCE/CONCLUSIONS:These findings increase our understanding of the poor outcomes that occur despite ideal realignment. Surgical correction of severe global sagittal deformity should be prioritized to mitigate these occurrences. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3/METHODS/:

OBJECTIVE:To assess whether surgical cervical deformity (CD) patients meet spinopelvic age-adjusted alignment targets, reciprocal, and lower limb compensation changes. STUDY DESIGN/METHODS:Retrospective review. METHODS:CD was defined as C2-C7 lordosis >10°, cervical sagittal vertical angle (cSVA) >4 cm, or T1 slope minus cervical lordosis (TS-CL) >20°. Inclusion criteria were age >18 years and undergoing surgical correction with complete baseline and postoperative imaging. Published formulas were used to create age-adjusted alignment target for pelvic tilt (PT), pelvic incidence and lumbar lordosis (PI-LL), sagittal vertical angle (SVA), and lumbar lordosis and thoracic kyphosis (LL-TK). Actual alignment was compared with age-adjusted ideal values. Patients who matched ±10-year thresholds for age-adjusted targets were compared with unmatched cases (under- or overcorrected). RESULTS:= 0.269). CONCLUSIONS:In response to worsening CD postoperatively, patients increased in TK and recruited less lower limb compensation. Almost 75% of CD patients did not meet previously established spinopelvic alignment goals, of whom a subset of patients were actually made worse off in these parameters following surgery. This finding raises the question of whether we should be looking at the entire spine when treating CD. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3/METHODS/: