Facet tropism in lumbar spine and cervical spine: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Author(s):  
Kanwaljeet Garg ◽  
Ankita Aggarwal
Healthcare ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 479
Author(s):  
Tatiana Sidiropoulou ◽  
Kalliopi Christodoulaki ◽  
Charalampos Siristatidis

A pre-procedural ultrasound of the lumbar spine is frequently used to facilitate neuraxial procedures. The aim of this review is to examine the evidence sustaining the utilization of pre-procedural neuraxial ultrasound compared to conventional methods. We perform a systematic review of randomized controlled trials with meta-analyses. We search the electronic databases Medline, Cochrane Central, Science Direct and Scopus up to 1 June 2019. We include trials comparing a pre-procedural lumbar spine ultrasound to a non-ultrasound-assisted method. The primary endpoints are technical failure rate, first-attempt success rate, number of needle redirections and procedure time. We retrieve 32 trials (3439 patients) comparing pre-procedural lumbar ultrasounds to palpations for neuraxial procedures in various clinical settings. Pre-procedural ultrasounds decrease the overall risk of technical failure (Risk Ratio (RR) 0.69 (99% CI, 0.43 to 1.10), p = 0.04) but not in obese and difficult spinal patients (RR 0.53, p = 0.06) and increase the first-attempt success rate (RR 1.5 (99% CI, 1.22 to 1.86), p < 0.0001, NNT = 5). In difficult spines and obese patients, the RR is 1.84 (99% CI, 1.44 to 2.3; p < 0.0001, NNT = 3). The number of needle redirections is lower with pre-procedural ultrasounds (SMD = −0.55 (99% CI, −0.81 to −0.29), p < 0.0001), as is the case in difficult spines and obese patients (SMD = −0.85 (99% CI, −1.08 to −0.61), p < 0.0001). No differences are observed in procedural times. Ιn conclusion, a pre-procedural ultrasound provides significant benefit in terms of technical failure, number of needle redirections and first attempt-success rate. Τhe effect of pre-procedural ultrasound scanning of the lumbar spine is more significant in a subgroup analysis of difficult spines and obese patients.


Author(s):  
Andreas Konrad ◽  
Richard Močnik ◽  
Sylvia Titze ◽  
Masatoshi Nakamura ◽  
Markus Tilp

The hip flexor muscles are major contributors to lumbar spine stability. Tight hip flexors can lead to pain in the lumbar spine, and hence to an impairment in performance. Moreover, sedentary behavior is a common problem and a major contributor to restricted hip extension flexibility. Stretching can be a tool to reduce muscle tightness and to overcome the aforementioned problems. Therefore, the purpose of this systematic review with meta-analysis was to determine the effects of a single hip flexor stretching exercise on performance parameters. The online search was performed in the following three databases: PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Eight studies were included in this review with a total of 165 subjects (male: 111; female 54). In contrast to other muscle groups (e.g., plantar flexors), where 120 s of stretching likely decreases force production, it seems that isolated hip flexor stretching of up to 120 s has no effect or even a positive impact on performance-related parameters. A comparison of the effects on performance between the three defined stretch durations (30–90 s; 120 s; 270–480 s) revealed a significantly different change in performance (p = 0.02) between the studies with the lowest hip flexor stretch duration (30–90 s; weighted mean performance change: −0.12%; CI (95%): −0.49 to 0.41) and the studies with the highest hip flexor stretch duration (270–480 s; performance change: −3.59%; CI (95%): −5.92 to −2.04). Meta-analysis revealed a significant (but trivial) impairment in the highest hip flexor stretch duration of 270–480 s (SMD effect size = −0.19; CI (95%) −0.379 to 0.000; Z = −1.959; p = 0.05; I2 = 0.62%), but not in the lowest stretch duration (30–90 s). This indicates a dose-response relationship in the hip flexor muscles. Although the evidence is based on a small number of studies, this information will be of great importance for both athletes and coaches.


Author(s):  
Leslie N. Silk ◽  
David A. Greene ◽  
Michael K. Baker

Research examining the preventative effects of calcium and vitamin D supplementation has focused on children and females, leaving the effects on male bone mineral density (BMD) largely unexplored. Thus, the aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to examine the efficacy of calcium supplementation, with or without vitamin D for improving BMD in healthy males. Medline, EMBASE, SPORTDiscus, Academic Search Complete, CINHAHL Plus and PubMed databases were searched for studies including healthy males which provided participants calcium supplementation with or without vitamin D and used changes to BMD as the primary outcome measure. Between trial standardized mean differences of percentage change from baseline in BMD of femoral neck, lumbar spine, total body and total hip sites were calculated. Nine studies were included in the systematic review with six references totaling 867 participants contributing to the meta-analysis. Significant pooled effects size (ES) for comparison between supplementation and control groups were found at all sites included in the meta-analysis. The largest effect was found in total body (ES = 0.644; 95% CI = 0.406–0.883; p < .001), followed by total hip (ES = 0.483, 95% CI= 0.255–0.711, p < .001), femoral neck (ES = 0.402, 95% CI = 0.233–0.570, p = .000) and lumbar spine (ES = 0.306, 95% CI = 0.173–0.440, p < .001). Limited evidence appears to support the use of calcium and vitamin D supplementation for improving BMD in older males. There is a need for high quality randomized controlled trials, especially in younger and middle-aged male cohorts and athletic populations to determine whether supplementation provides a preventative benefit.


2019 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 205435811985801 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alyssa Lip ◽  
Ashley Warias ◽  
M. Khaled Shamseddin ◽  
Benjamin Thomson ◽  
D. Thiwanka Wijeratne

Background: Bone mineral density (BMD) decreases postrenal transplantation. Evidence demonstrating the effects of bisphosphonates on BMD and fracture risk beyond 1-year posttransplant is sparse in existing literature, but remains essential to enhance clinical outcomes in this population. Objective: Our study aimed to systematically review and meta-analyze the current literature on the use of any bisphosphonate in the adult renal transplant population beyond the first year of renal transplant to determine its effect on BMD and fracture incidence. Design: We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of primary research literature that included full-text, English-language, original randomized clinical trials (RCTs) and observational studies. Setting: Patient data were primarily captured in an outpatient setting across various studies. Patients: Our population of interest was patients older than 18 years who received deceased/living donor kidney transplantation and any bisphosphonate with a follow-up greater than 12 months posttransplantation. Measurements: The primary outcome was change in BMD from baseline. Secondary outcomes were the incidence of fractures and effects of other confounders on bone health. Methods: We included RCTs and observational studies that satisfied our inclusion criteria. Each study was analyzed for risk of bias and data were extrapolated to analyze for overall statistical significance accounting for heterogeneity of studies. Results: Sixteen studies (N = 1762) were analyzed. The follow-up ranged from 12 to 98 months. There was a nonsignificant improvement in BMD with bisphosphonate treatment persisting into the second and third years posttransplant at the lumbar spine. The calculated standardized mean BMD difference was −0.29 (−0.75 to 0.17), P = .22. Only 5 studies reported a total of 43 new fractures. Prednisone ( P < .01), low body weight ( P < .001), low body mass index ( P < .01), and male gender ( P < .05) correlated with reduced lumbar and femoral BMD. Limitations: Limitations of this review include the use of BMD as a surrogate outcome, the bias of the included studies, and the incomplete reporting data in numerous analyzed studies. Conclusions: We demonstrate no statistically significant benefit of bisphosphonate treatment on BMD beyond the first year postrenal transplantation. Despite heterogeneity of treatment, a differential nonsignificant improvement in lumbar spine BMD was consistent and may be clinically relevant. Trial Registration: PROSPERO CRD42019125593


2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 282-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Randolph Onggo ◽  
Mithun Nambiar ◽  
Jason Derry Onggo ◽  
Kevin Phan ◽  
Anuruban Ambikaipalan ◽  
...  

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