Surgeon variation: a south african spinal pathology treatment survey.

Purpose: To investigate variation in treatment decisions among spine surgeons in South Africa and the association between surgeon characteristics and the treatment they select.

Methods: We surveyed 79 South African spine surgeons. We presented four vignettes (cervical spine distractive flexion injury, lumbar disc herniation, degenerative spondylolisthesis with stenosis, and insufficiency fracture) for them to assess and select treatments.

Culture filtrate supplementation can be used to improve culture positivity for spinal tuberculosis diagnosis.

Culture remains the gold standard to diagnose spinal tuberculosis (STB) despite the paucibacillary nature of the disease. Current methods can take up to 42 days to yield a result, delaying the ability to rapidly detect drug resistance. Studies have demonstrated the use of supplementation with culture filtrate (CF) from an axenic culture of () as a source of growth factors to improve culture rates.

Loss to long-term follow-up in children with spinal tuberculosis: a retrospective cohort study at a tertiary hospital in the Western Cape, South Africa.

Introduction: children with spinal tuberculosis (TB) are at risk of kyphotic deformity both during and after the active phase of the disease. Management guidelines include follow-up until skeletal maturity. Little is known about adherence to this recommendation.

Evaluation of host biomarkers for monitoring treatment response in spinal tuberculosis: A 12-month cohort study.

Background: Monitoring treatment response is an important precaution in spinal tuberculosis (TB), particularly when the condition was clinically diagnosed rather than bacteriologically confirmed and when drug susceptibility testing was not performed. Conventional monitoring measures have limitations and there is a need for favourable alternatives. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate changes in immune biomarkers over the course of treatment for spinal TB and to compare these responses to the conventional monitoring measure, erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR).

Candidate Biomarkers to Distinguish Spinal Tuberculosis From Mechanical Back Pain in a Tuberculosis Endemic Setting.

Background: Spinal tuberculosis (TB) may have a variable, non-specific presentation including back pain with- or without- constitutional symptoms. Further tools are needed to aid early diagnosis of this potentially severe form of TB and immunological biomarkers may show potential in this regard. The aim of this study was to investigate the utility of host serum biomarkers to distinguish spinal TB from mechanical back pain.

Biomarkers to predict FDG PET/CT activity after the standard duration of treatment for spinal tuberculosis: An exploratory study.

Objectives: 18F-Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) Positron Emission Tomography- Computed Tomography (PET/CT) scans can be used to assess healing following treatment for spinal tuberculosis (TB) but have limited accessibility and high cost. This study investigated the association between immune biomarkers and FDG-PET/CT activity after ≥9 months of treatment for spinal TB.

Methods: Patients who had completed ≥9 months of treatment for spinal TB were recruited from a major hospital in the Western Cape, South Africa.

Percutaneous core needle biopsies: the yield in spinal tuberculosis.

Background: Current recommendations for spinal tuberculosis (TB) not requiring open surgery include core needle biopsy to confirm TB and determine drug sensitivity. International figures show the positive culture yield from core needle biopsies is 50 -- 83%.Objectives.