ReviewBMC musculoskeletal disorders2020
Surgical decision-making for ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament versus other types of degenerative cervical myelopathy: anterior versus posterior approaches.
Review in BMC musculoskeletal disorders, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 31 papers.
What it found
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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.
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.
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Who cites it
31 citing papers in PubMed, 49 citations in OpenAlex.
- Preoperative cervical curvature and outcomes after uniportal posterior percutaneous endoscopic cervical foraminotomy: a single-center retrospective study.Neurosurgical review · 2026Article
- Dynamic K-Line Status and Surgical Outcomes in Multilevel Cervical OPLL: A Multicenter Comparative Study.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Finite element analysis of the effects of different ossification types and spinal canal occupancy rates on dynamic spinal cord stress in cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2026Article
- Sulfated chitosan enhances BMP-2-mediated spinal fusion via skeletal stem cell rejuvenation in aging.Bioactive materials · 2025Article
- Clinico-radiological Prognostic Indicators of Surgical Outcomes in Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy.Cureus · 2025Article
- Quantitative Investigation of the "K-Line Edge", a Clustered K-Line (±) Group Derived from K-Line Assessment in Patients with Ossification of the Posterior Longitudinal Ligament.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Article
- Letter to the editor concerning "anterior cervical tunnectomy and fusion (ACTF): A novel technique for cervical Canal decompression" by C. Qiu et al. (Eur spine J. 2023; 32:2110-2119).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 · 2025Article
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- Predictive role of preoperative parameters in LAMP outcomes for myelopathy caused by COPLL.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Article
- Clinical characteristics and surgical options of cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament with trauma: a retrospective comparative study.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2025Article
- A comparison of conventional intervention and home-based approach with head-mounted device for cervical spondylotic myelopathy after surgery.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Review
- The effects of C2 instability on cervical curvature changes and clinical outcomes after sub-axial cervical expansive door-open laminoplasty.Frontiers in surgery · 2025Article
- Cervical Open-Door Laminoplasty for Myelopathy Caused by Ossification of the Posterior Longitudinal Ligament: Correlation Between Spinal Canal Expansion and Clinical Outcomes.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Radiographic characterization of OPLL progression in patients receiving laminoplasty with a minimum of two-years follow-up.Neurosurgical review · 2024Article
- Correlation of imaging characteristics of degenerative cervical myelopathy and the surgical approach with improvement for postoperative neck pain and neural function: a retrospective cohort study.Quantitative imaging in medicine and surgery · 2024Article
- A Novel Posterior Compression Score System for Outcome Prediction in Laminoplasty Treated OPLL Patients: A Propensity-Matched Analysis.Global spine journal · 2024Article
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- Minimally invasive fenestration for decompression of C2-C3 spinal stenosis.BMJ case reports · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundThe debate between anterior or posterior approach for pathologies such as cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) and ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL) have drawn heated debate but are still inconclusive. A narrative review was performed specifically to study the differences pertaining to OPLL and other causes of degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). Current evidence suggests that anterior approach is preferred for K-line (-) OPLL, K-line (+) with canal occupying ratio > 60% and DCM with pre-existing cervical kyphosis. Posterior approach is preferred for K-line (+) OPLL with canal-occupying ratio < 50-60%, and multi-level CSM. No particular advantage for either approach was observed for DCM in a lordotic cervical spine. Anterior approach is generally associated with more complications and thus needs to be weighed carefully during decision-making. The evidence is not convincing for comparing single versus multi-level involvement, and the role of patients' co-morbidity status, pre-existing osteoporosis and co-existent spinal pathologies in influencing patient outcome and surgical options. This should be a platform for future research directives.
conclusionFrom this review, evidence is still inconclusive but there are some factors to consider, and DCM and OPLL should be considered separately for decision-making. Anterior approach is considered for pre-existing cervical kyphosis in DCM, for K-line (-) regardless of canal-occupying ratio, and K-line (+) and canal-occupying ratio > 60% for OPLL patients. Posterior approach is considered for patients with multi-level pathology for DCM, and K-line (+) and canal-occupying ratio < 50-60% for OPLL.
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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.