ArticleThe spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society2019
Trends in lumbar radiofrequency ablation utilization from 2007 to 2016.
Article in The spine journal : official journal of the North American Spine Society, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 26 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
A Single-center, Prospective, Double-blind, Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating Iovera° Lumbar Medial Branch Cryoneurolysis Versus Radiofrequency Ablation for the Treatment of Facet-mediated Chronic Low Back Pain
A Prospective, Randomized, Assessor Blind, Active-controlled, Single-center Study to Evaluate the Efficacy of Iovera Lumbar Medial Branch Cryoneurolysis Versus Radiofrequency Ablation for the Treatment of Facet-mediated Chronic Low Back Pain
Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 62 citations in OpenAlex.
- Current evidence on radiofrequency denervation for chronic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ open · 2026Pooled it
- Percutaneous radiofrequency ablation and endoscopic neurotomy for lumbar facet joint syndrome: are they good enough?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 · 2024Pooled it
- Trial
- A pragmatic randomized prospective trial of cooled radiofrequency ablation of the medial branch nerves versus facet joint injection of corticosteroid for the treatment of lumbar facet syndrome: 12 month outcomes.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2023Trial
- Providing Epidemiological Data in Lumbar Spine Imaging Reports Did Not Affect Subsequent Utilization of Spine Procedures: Secondary Outcomes from a Stepped-Wedge Randomized Controlled Trial.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2021Trial
- Radiofrequency Ablation for Refractory Palmar and Plantar Hyperhidrosis: A Case Report.Anesthesiology and pain medicine · 2026Article
- Returning to Work and Cost-Effectiveness After Lumbar Facet Cryodenervation Among Patients with Chronic Low Back Pain.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Vertebrae and intervertebral discs segmentation using deep learning-based model in disability analysis.Frontiers in medicine · 2026Article
- The effectiveness of lumbar medial branch radiofrequency ablation using a three-tined electrode: A real-world cross-sectional cohort study.Interventional pain medicine · 2025Article
- Radiofrequency Ablation for Chronic Pain: Mechanistic Insights and Emerging Innovations.Cureus · 2025Review
- Trends in Nonsurgical Interventions and Analgesic Medications for Low Back Pain: A Large Claims Database Study in Japan.Pain practice : the official journal of World Institute of Pain · 2025Article
- The impact of emotional distress on response to radiofrequency ablation.Pain reports · 2025Article
- Article
- Reddit users' perspectives on radiofrequency ablation: A data analysis.Interventional pain medicine · 2025Article
- Traditional versus cooled-radiofrequency neurotomy for the treatment of chronic lumbar facet (zygapophyseal) joint pain.Pain management · 2024Article
- The effect of lumbar medial branch radiofrequency neurotomy on cobb angle progression in individuals with adult scoliosis compared to natural history: A cross-sectional study.Interventional pain medicine · 2024Article
- Efficacy and safety of radiofrequency ablation versus surgical sympathectomy in palmar hyperhidrosis.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Low back pain-related healthcare utilization following intraosseous basivertebral nerve radiofrequency ablation: a pooled analysis from three prospective clinical trials.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2024Article
- Delphi-Based Expert Consensus Statements for the Management of Percutaneous Radiofrequency Neurotomy in the Treatment of Lumbar Facet Joint Syndrome.Pain and therapy · 2023Article
- Is routine intravenous access commonly established before interventional pain procedures? Results of a spine intervention society practice pattern survey.Interventional pain medicine · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
background contextLumbar radiofrequency ablation (RFA) is an intervention used to treat facet-mediated chronic low back pain. In some studies with methods consistent with clinical practice guidelines, RFA results in improvements in pain and functional limitations. However, in other studies, RFA demonstrates limited benefit. Despite unanswered questions regarding efficacy of RFA, its use is widespread. PURPOSE: To describe trends in the utilization and cost of lumbar RFA and lumbar facet injections. STUDY DESIGN/
settingRetrospective cohort study. PATIENT SAMPLE: The sample was derived from the IBM/Watson MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters Databases from 2007 to 2016. OUTCOME MEASURES: Longitudinal trends in the distribution and quantity of lumbar facet injections before lumbar RFA, corticosteroid administration during lumbar facet injections, progression to lumbar RFA after lumbar facet injections, lumbar RFA utilization, and costs of these interventions.
methodsTwo primary cohorts were identified from patients who received lumbar RFA or lumbar facet injection procedures. Utilization rates per 100,000 enrollees were determined for both cohorts. The mean, median, and interquartile ranges of the number of facets targeted and costs per procedure were calculated by year and laterality, as well as overall. Costs in 2018 dollars were estimated by summing gross payment totals from patients and insurance plans. This study was supported by funds from the NIH, and has no conflict of interest associated biases.
resultsFrom 2007 to 2016, lumbar RFA sessions performed per 100,000 enrollees per year increased from 49 to 113, a 130.6% overall increase (9.7% annually). Lumbar facet injection use increased from 201 to 251 sessions per 100,000 enrollees, a 24.9% overall increase (2.5% annually). In the year after a lumbar facet injection, 26.7% of patients received lumbar RFA; 28.6% received another injection but not RFA; and 44.7% received neither. The number of patients receiving two lumbar facet injection procedures prior to lumbar RFA grew from 51.1% in 2010 to 58.8% in 2016. For lumbar RFA, the cost per 100,000 enrollees went from $94,570 in 2007 to $266,680 in 2016, a 12.2% annual increase. For lumbar facet injections, the cost per 100,000 enrollees went from $257,280 in 2007 to $396,580 in 2016, a 4.9% annual increase.
conclusionsThis analysis showed consistent growth in both the frequency and procedure cost of lumbar RFA and facet injections among a large, national, commercially insured population from 2007 to 2016.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.