ArticleSkeletal radiology2020
Lumbar facet joint subchondral bone density in low back pain and asymptomatic subjects.
Article in Skeletal radiology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.
- Bone Mineral Density Distribution in the Posterior Wall of the Lateral Mass Evaluated by Computed Tomography Osteoabsorptiometry.Asian journal of neurosurgery · 2025Article
- Association between bone mineral density and lower back pain in the general United States population using the NHANES of 1999-2004.Frontiers in surgery · 2025Article
- Computed Tomography Osteoabsorptiometry Evaluation of Cervical Endplate Subchondral Bone Mineral Density.Global spine journal · 2023Article
- CT Osteoabsorptiometry Assessment of Subchondral Bone Density Predicts Intervertebral Implant Subsidence in a Human ACDF Cadaver Model.Global spine journal · 2023Article
- Level dependent alterations in human facet cartilage mechanics and bone morphometry with spine degeneration.Journal of orthopaedic research : official publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society · 2023Article
- Risk Factors for Short-Term and Long-Term Low Back Pain After Transforaminal Endoscopic Lumbar Discectomy.Journal of pain research · 2023Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo report in vivo measurements of lumbar facet joint subchondral bone mineral density used in the description of facet joint loading patterns and to interrogate if low back pain is associated with changes in subchondral bone mineral density. MATERIALS AND
methodsIn vivo measurements of lumbar facet joint subchondral bone mineral density (L1/2 to L5/S1) in Hounsfield units were performed on 89 volunteers (56 controls and 33 with low back pain) by computed tomography osteoabsorptiometry at subchondral regions between 1.5 mm and 2.5 mm below the joint surface. The facet surface was divided into five topographic zones: cranial, lateral, caudal, medial, and central.
resultsWe analyzed 1780 facet joint surfaces. Facets were denser (p < 0.0001) both in superior facets and in low back pain subjects (p < 0.0001). For the entire cohort, the facet center zone subchondral bone mineral density was higher (p < 0.0001) than that of the peripheral zones. The analyses indicate that subchondral bone mineral density is highest in patients with low back pain, the superior facets, and the center zone of the facets.
conclusionsSubchondral bone mineral density is thought to reflect cumulative, long-term distribution of stress acting on a joint. This work shows that higher subchondral bone mineral density values in the center zone indicate predominant stress transmission through the center of the facet joints. Finally, the greater subchondral bone mineral density in patients with low back pain may reflect both increased load bearing by the facets secondary to disc degeneration and misdistribution of loading within the joint.
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.