ArticleEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2011
Factors determining the success of radiofrequency denervation in lumbar facet joint pain: a prospective study.
Article in European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 19 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
19 citing papers in PubMed, 51 citations in OpenAlex.
- Trial
- Basivertebral nerve ablation provides comparable early pain relief in patients with psychiatric conditions: A real-world study.Interventional pain medicine · 2026Article
- The Hidden Anatomy of Low Back Pain: Uncovering the Impact of Mamillo-Accessory Ligament Ossification.Journal of functional morphology and kinesiology · 2026Article
- Effect of Sarcopenia on the Outcomes of Radiofrequency Ablation of Medial Branch Nerves for Lumbar Facet Arthropathy in Patients Aged 60 Years and Older: A Retrospective Analysis.Journal of personalized medicine · 2025Article
- A retrospective single arm cohort study evaluating the efficacy of lumbar medial branch radiofrequency ablation using a multi-tined probe and perpendicular approach.Interventional pain medicine · 2025Article
- The impact of emotional distress on response to radiofrequency ablation.Pain reports · 2025Article
- Article
- Vertebrogenic Pain: A Paradigm Shift in Diagnosis and Treatment of Axial Low Back Pain.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2022Article
- Pain Relief Salvage with a Novel Minimally Invasive Posterior Sacroiliac Joint Fusion Device in Patients with Previously Implanted Pain Devices and Therapies.Journal of pain research · 2021Article
- Latest Evidence-Based Application for Radiofrequency Neurotomy (LEARN): Best Practice Guidelines from the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience (ASPN).Journal of pain research · 2021Review
- Quantifying Dysfunction of the Lumbar Multifidus Muscle After Radiofrequency Neurotomy and Fusion Surgery: A Preliminary Study.Journal of engineering and science in medical diagnostics and therapy · 2020Article
- Consensus practice guidelines on interventions for lumbar facet joint pain from a multispecialty, international working group.Regional anesthesia and pain medicine · 2020Article
- Medial branch radiofrequency ablation outcomes in patients with centralized pain.Regional anesthesia and pain medicine · 2019Article
- Outcomes and prognostic variables of radiofrequency zygapophyseal joint neurotomy in Utah workers' compensation patients.Journal of pain research · 2017Article
- Influence of BMI, gender, and sports on pain decrease and medication usage after facet-medial branch neurotomy or SI joint lateral branch cooled RF-neurotomy in case of low back pain: original research in the Austrian population.Journal of pain research · 2017Article
- Use of localized human growth hormone and testosterone injections in addition to manual therapy and exercise for lower back pain: a case series with 12-month follow-up.Journal of pain research · 2015Article
- Facet joint pain--advances in patient selection and treatment.Nature reviews. Rheumatology · 2013Review
- The Michel Benoist and Robert Mulholland yearly European Spine Journal review: a survey of the "medical" articles in the European Spine Journal, 2011.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2012Review
- Radiofrequency treatment of facet-related pain: evidence and controversies.Current pain and headache reports · 2012Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
aimsRadiofrequency denervation (RF) of the lumbar facet joints has been shown to be effective in well-selected patients. However, long-term success varies between studies. We evaluated the influence of selected psychosocial and constitutional factors on the outcome of RF, expressed as the duration of pain relief.
methodsThis prospective observational study included 44 patients who received RF denervations at the University Hospital of Berne. Success was defined as at least 50% pain reduction 7-21 days, 6 months and 1 year after RF therapy. The Cox-regression analysis was performed to evaluate the influence of the following factors on the duration of success: age, sex, depression, work inability and previous surgery.
resultsComplete follow-up was available for 41 patients. The success rate 7-21 days after the denervation was 76%. It decreased to 32% at 6 months and to 22% at 1 year. The median success duration was 17 weeks (95% CI 10-26). The Cox-regression analysis showed a significant shorter duration of success for patients with depression (hazard ratio [HR] 2.97, 95% CI 1.32-6.65), previous surgery (HR 2.39, 95% CI 1.10-5.21) and number of treated joints (HR 1.95 for each increase in the number of joints, 95% CI 1.14-3.33). In bivariate analyses, only depression was kept to be significant.
conclusionsDepression seems to be related with a short duration of success. Based on these findings, a comprehensive study is warranted to evaluate whether psychosocial factors have to be considered when recruiting patients for radiofrequency denervation.
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