The co-influence of hyaluronic acid and collagen on the development of an engineered annulus tissue model with bone marrow stromal cells.

Inveterbral disc degeneration is a significant musculoskeletal disease that brings huge burden of pain, disability, psychological and social consequences to the affected population worldwide with treatments that only alleviate the pain but does not address the underlying biological problems. For the past decades, tissue engineering of the disc has been investigated with annulus fibrosus (AF) been one of the complicated disc component to be engineered. With the limited source of annulus cells, bone marrow stromal cells (BMSCs) have been frequently investigated as a potental cell candidate to develop an AF-like tissue which often require a multi-disciplinary effort to achieve.

A 10-Year Radiographic Study Comparing Anterior Versus Posterior Instrumented Spinal Fusion in Patients With Lenke Type 5 Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis.

Unlabelled: MINI: This is a long-term prospective cohort study comparing the radiographic outcomes of anterior versus posterior instrumentation for Lenke 5 adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Both approaches were comparable in terms of radiographic outcomes up to 10 years. The posterior approach is more prone to developing proximal junctional kyphosis.

Ossification of the yellow ligament in the cervical spine - an unusual location.

Ossification of the yellow ligament (OYL) or ligamentum flavum, usually occurs in the thoracic spine. Focal OYL occurring in the cervical spine is considered rare and is sparsely reported in the literature. We came across a 30-year-old male patient with progressive left upper limb and bilateral lower limb weakness over a period of 3 months, associated with an unsteady gait.

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs in chronic pain: implications of new data for clinical practice.

COX2-selective and nonselective (ns) nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are widely used for chronic pain management. There are marked differences in the risk of adverse gastrointestinal (GI) and cardiovascular (CV) events among different NSAIDs. In 2017, publication of two randomized controlled trials and an individual patient-data meta-analysis provided robust data on the relative GI and CV tolerability profiles of currently available NSAIDs.

Hydrogel based cartilaginous tissue regeneration: recent insights and technologies.

Hydrogels have been extensively employed as an attractive biomaterial to address numerous existing challenges in the fields of regenerative medicine and research because of their unique properties such as the capability to encapsulate cells, high water content, ease of modification, low toxicity, injectability, in situ spatial fit and biocompatibility. These inherent properties have created many opportunities for hydrogels as a scaffold or a cell/drug carrier in tissue regeneration, especially in the field of cartilaginous tissue such as articular cartilage and intervertebral discs. A concise overview of the anatomy/physiology of these cartilaginous tissues and their pathophysiology, epidemiology and existing clinical treatments will be briefly described.

Subsequent Vertebral Fractures Post Cement Augmentation of the Thoracolumbar Spine: Does it Correlate With Level-specific Bone Mineral Density Scores?

Study Design: A case-control study.

Objective: In this study, we investigated the correlation between level-specific preoperative bone mineral density and subsequent vertebral fractures. We also identified factors associated with subsequent vertebral fractures.

Open and minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion: comparison of intermediate results and complications.

Study Design: Prospective study.

Purpose: To compare clinical and radiological outcomes of open vs. minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MI-TLIF).

Three-dimensional development of tensile pre-strained annulus fibrosus cells for tissue regeneration: an in-vitro study.

Prior research has investigated the immediate response after application of tensile strain on annulus fibrosus (AF) cells for the past decade. Although mechanical strain can produce either catabolic or anabolic consequences to the cell monolayer, little is known on how to translate these findings into further tissue engineering applications. Till to date, the application and effect of tensile pre-strained cells to construct a three-dimensional (3D) AF tissue remains unknown.

Asymptomatic cement embolism in the right atrium after vertebroplasty using high-viscosity cement: a case report.

A 52-year-old woman underwent vertebroplasty for fractures of the T10, T11, and L2 vertebrae secondary to multiple myeloma. She was discharged uneventfully within a week. Nine months later, she was readmitted for syncope.

Is hybrid surgery of the cervical spine a good balance between fusion and arthroplasty? Pilot results from a single surgeon series.

Purpose: Few studies have investigated the role of hybrid surgery (HS) that incorporates anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) and artificial disc replacement (ADR) techniques. To our knowledge, this is the first study that provides a direct comparison of all three groups in terms of intra-operative parameters and outcomes with a minimum follow-up of 2 years.

Methods: Seven consecutive patients who underwent HS were matched with another seven patients who underwent ACDF and ADR based on levels of surgery.

Vascularization and morphological changes of the endplate after axial compression and distraction of the intervertebral disc.

Study Design: An in vivo study of the rabbit's endplate and intervertebral disc (IVD).

Objective: To assess the histologic features and vascularization of the endplate after axial compression and distraction, along with the degeneration and regeneration status of IVD.

Summary Of Background Data: Current studies mainly focus on the changes in the IVD in response to degeneration and regeneration.

An in vitro study of dynamic cyclic compressive stress on human inner annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus cells.

Background Context: Intervertebral disc (IVD) cells exhibit diverse biologic responses to compressive stress depending on the compressive stress type, magnitude, duration, and anatomic zone of IVD cell origin. The previous studies mainly focused on the effects of compressive stress on animal IVD tissue. Few studies have investigated the response of human IVD tissue to compressive stress.

Lumbar degenerative spinal deformity: Surgical options of PLIF, TLIF and MI-TLIF.

Degenerative disease of the lumbar spine is common in ageing populations. It causes disturbing back pain, radicular symptoms and lowers the quality of life. We will focus our discussion on the surgical options of posterior lumbar interbody fusion (PLIF) and transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) and minimally invasive transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (MI-TLIF) for lumbar degenerative spinal deformities, which include symptomatic spondylolisthesis and degenerative scoliosis.

Traumatic spondylolisthesis of the lumbar spine: a report of three cases.

Traumatic spondylolisthesis of the lumbar spine is uncommon and can result in canal narrowing and spinal cord injury. Early decompression promotes recovery of neurological function. We report 3 such cases: one in the lumbosacral joint and 2 in the lumbar spine.

Effects of cyclic dynamic tensile strain on previously compressed inner annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus cells of human intervertebral disc-an in vitro study.

Our objective was to investigate whether dynamic tensile strain on previously compressed human intervertebral disc (IVD) cells can restore the biosynthetic effects of collagen and glycosaminoglycan. Inner annulus fibrosus (AF) and nucleus pulposus (NP) tissues of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis cases undergoing thoracoscopic discectomy and fusion were cultured on compressive plates. Compressive stress was applied using 0.

Solis cage (PEEK) for anterior cervical fusion: preliminary radiological results with emphasis on fusion and subsidence.

Background Context: Recent literature has raised some apprehensions with regard to the usage of cervical cages.

Purpose: Radiological review of cases performed at our institution with a novel cage made of polyetheretherketone (PEEK).

Study Design: Retrospective study.

Insertion torque profile during pedicle screw insertion of the thoracic spine with and without violation of the pedicle wall: comparison between cylindrical and conical designs.

Study Design: Biomechanical study in human cadaveric thoracic spines.

Objective: To compare the insertion torque profile of cylindrical and conical screws with normal insertion tract, and with violation of the pedicle.

Summary Of Background Data: Previous studies revealed higher insertion torque for conical screws.

Percutaneous vertebroplasty: current concepts and local experience.

With the aging population in our country, symptomatic osteoporotic compression fractures are increasingly common. Osteolytic compression fractures from spinal metastasis are also becoming more frequently seen because of the longer life expectancy from improvements in chemotherapy. Percutaneous vertebroplasty with PMMA has been shown to be an efficient procedure to treat pain due to these fractures.

Adjacent level discitis after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF): a case report.

This report describes a case of spondylodiscitis occurring adjacent to levels at which anterior cervical discectomy and fusion was performed. The objective is to describe a rare cause of spondylodiscitis and discuss its successful management. Post-operative discitis involving the same level is a known occurrence.

The effect of previous low back surgery on general health status: results from the National Spine Network initial visit survey of patients with low back pain.

Study Design: A cross-sectional study on 18,325 patients with back pain enrolled at first visit in the National Spine Network (NSN) database from January 1998 to April 2000.

Objectives: To examine whether patients who had previous low back surgeries had poorer general health status than patients with no surgery.

Summary Of Background Data: Several studies have described the role of psychological abnormalities in patients with chronic low back pain.

Protective effects of growth hormone on physeal distraction: an experimental study on rabbits.

The objective of this study is to evaluate the effects of growth hormone on physeal distraction. We performed physeal distraction of the proximal tibia physis on 32 immature New Zealand white rabbits. The rabbits were randomly allocated into receiving either saline (test 1) or growth hormone (test 2), injected subcutaneously around the physis.