Three-dimensional motion analysis of the cervical spine for comparison of anterior cervical decompression and fusion versus artificial disc replacement in 17 patients: clinical article.

Object: Cervical arthroplasty with an artificial disc (AD) has emerged as an alternative to anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) for the management of cervical spondylosis. This study aims to provide 3D motion analysis data comparing patients after ACDF and AD replacement.

Methods: Ten patients who underwent C5-6 ACDF and 7 who underwent C5-6 AD replacement were enrolled. Using biplanar fluoroscopy and a model-based track technique (accurate up to 0.6 mm and 0.6°), motion analysis of axial rotation and flexion-extension of the neck was performed. Three nonoperative segments (C3-4, C4-5, and C6-7) were assessed for both intervertebral rotation (coronal, sagittal, and axial planes) and facet shear (anteroposterior and mediolateral).

Results: There was no difference in total neck motion comparing ACDF and AD replacement for neck extension (43.3° ± 10.2° vs 44.3° ± 12.6°, p = 0.866) and rotation (36.0° ± 6.5° vs 38.2° ± 9.3°, p = 0.576). For extension, when measured as a percentage of total neck motion, there was a greater amount of rotation at the nonoperated segments in the ACDF group than in the AD group (p = 0.003). When comparing specific motion segments, greater normalized rotation was seen in the ACDF group at C3-4 (33.2% ± 4.9% vs 26.8% ± 6.6%, p = 0.036) and C6-7 (28.5% ± 6.7% vs 20.5% ± 5.5%, p = 0.009) but not at C4-5 (33.5% ± 6.4% vs 31.8% ± 4.0%, p = 0.562). For neck rotation, greater rotation was observed at the nonoperative segments in the ACDF group than in the AD group (p = 0.024), but the differences between individual segments did not reach significance (p ≥ 0.146). Increased mediolateral facet shear was seen on neck extension with ACDF versus AD replacement (p = 0.008). Comparing each segment, C3-4 (0.9 ± 0.5 mm vs 0.4 ± 0.1 mm, p = 0.039) and C4-5 (1.0 ± 0.4 mm vs 0.5 ± 0.2 mm, p = 0.022) showed increased shear while C6-7 (1.0 ± 0.4 mm vs 1.0 ± 0.5 mm, p = 0.767) did not.

Conclusions: This study illustrates increased motion at nonoperative segments in patients who have undergone ACDF compared with those who have undergone AD replacement. Further studies will be required to examine whether these changes contribute to adjacent-segment disease.