Mental health comorbidities in workers' compensation patients and the effect on pain, disability, quality of life, and return to work after lumbar spine surgery.

Objective: The impact of mental health comorbidities on outcomes after lumbar spine surgery in workers' compensation (WC) patients has not been robustly explored. The goal of this study was to examine the impact of mental health comorbidities on pain, disability, quality of life, and return to work after lumbar spine surgery in WC patients.

Methods: A nationwide, prospective surgical outcomes registry (National Neurosurgery Quality Outcomes Database [N2QOD]) was queried for all patients who underwent 1- to 4-level lumbar decompression and/or fusion from 2012 to 2021.

Remote cognitive behavioral therapy utilizing an in-home virtual reality toolkit (Vx Therapy) reduces pain, anxiety, and depression in patients with chronic cervical and lumbar spondylytic pain: A potential alternative to opioids in multimodal pain management.

Background Context: Virtual reality (VR) reduces pain through visual and auditory distraction without narcotic-related side effects or dependency. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) improves pain-related disability and quality of life, but patient access remains a challenge. We hypothesized that in-home weekly CBT coordinated with daily use of a proprietary VR toolkit will reduce pain, anxiety, and depression for patients with non-operative chronic cervical and lumbar spondylitic pain with and without radiculopathy.

Effect of workers' compensation status on pain, disability, quality of life, and return to work after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: a 1-year propensity score-matched analysis.

Objective: Patients with workers' compensation (WC) claims are reported to demonstrate poorer surgical outcomes after lumbar spine surgery. However, outcomes after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) in WC patients remain debatable. The authors aimed to compare outcomes between a propensity score-matched population of WC and non-WC patients who underwent ACDF.

Effect of workers' compensation status on pain, disability, quality of life, and return to work after lumbar spine surgery: a 1-year propensity-matched analysis.

Objective: Workers' compensation (WC) and litigation have been shown to adversely impact prognoses in a vast range of health conditions. Low-back pain is currently the most frequent reason for WC claims. The objective of this study was to conduct the largest propensity-matched comparison of outcomes between patients with WC and non-WC status who underwent lumbar spinal decompression with and without fusion.

Combining Virtual Reality and Behavioral Health to Promote Pain Resiliency: Analysis of a Novel BioPsychoSocial Modality for Solving Pain in the Workplace.

Background: The use of virtual reality in treating pain symptoms is a new and emerging modality that has gained more traction, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to a rise in the remote care of patients. Our study tested the effectiveness of a home-based pain relief program that utilized virtual reality and behavioral health for treating acute and chronic pain.

Study Design: Retrospective Cohort Study.

Repeatability analysis of airborne electromagnetic surveys.

Purpose: We provide methods for determining the repeatability of airborne electromagnetic surveys when conducted at different altitudes over a number of repeated flights. Our data arise from the TELLUS project carried out by the Geological Surveys of Ireland and Northern Ireland and we examine the repeatability of the apparent resistivity at different frequencies.

Methods: After considering a number of issues with the data, we propose two different models from the functional data analysis literature; a Weiner process with random effects, and a penalised spline smoother.