Local Retropharyngeal Space Anesthetic for Dysphagia Reduction after Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion Surgery: A Single-Center, Prospective, Randomized, Double-Blinded, Placebo-Controlled Clinical Trial.

Objective: The main objective of this study was to analyze the ability of local anesthetic instillation into the retropharyngeal space to reduce dysphagia symptoms and occurrence rates in patients undergoing anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) procedures.

Methods: A single-center, prospective, randomized, double-blinded, and placebo-controlled clinical study was performed. We enrolled patients undergoing one- or two-level ACDF procedures for cervical degenerative disc disease with disc herniation, radiculopathy and/or myelopathy symptoms.

The Impact of Preventative Multimodal Analgesia on Postoperative Opioid Requirement and Pain Control in Patients Undergoing Lumbar Fusions.

Study Design: A prospective observational study with a historical reference group.

Objectives: The main objectives of this study were to determine the impact of preventative multimodal analgesia (PMA) on postoperative opioid requirements and analgesic effectiveness in patients undergoing lumbar fusion surgery.

Summary Of Background Data: PMA addresses the multiple pathways of acute and chronic pain by interfering with peripheral and central sensitization and should provide a way to achieve safer and more effective pain management with reduced opioid medication use.

Prospective randomized feasibility study comparing manual vs. automatic position-adaptive spinal cord stimulation with surgical leads.

Background: The majority of patients experience uncomfortable stimulation associated with posture changes, especially when lying down. The spinal cord moves within the intrathecal space in response to positional changes affecting the size of the stimulated area accordingly and causing overstimulation or understimulation. To accommodate for positional changes, patients have to manually adjust the stimulation parameters; therefore, an automatic position-adaptive SCS was designed to address these issues.

Prediction based on preoperative opioid use of clinical outcomes after transforaminal lumbar interbody fusions.

OBJECTIVE Opioid analgesics have become some of the most prescribed drugs in the world, despite the lack of long-term studies evaluating the benefits of opioid medications versus their risks associated with chronic use. In addition, long-term opioid use may be associated with worse long-term clinical outcomes. The primary objective of this study was to evaluate whether preoperative opioid use predicted inferior clinical outcomes among patients undergoing transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion (TLIF) for symptomatic lumbar degenerative disc disease.