Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34494139›Full record

ArticleEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2021

A preliminary assessment of intervertebral disc health and pathoanatomy changes observed two years following anterior vertebral body tethering.

Daniel G Hoernschemeyer, Melanie E Boeyer, Nicole M Tweedy, John R Worley, Julia R Crim

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In one paragraph

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, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
14citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
2.6field-weighted citation impact, top 10% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

14 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 21 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. The Effects of Vertebral Body Tethering on the Intervertebral Discs and Facet Joints: A Numerical Analysis.International journal for numerical methods in biomedical engineering · 2025
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. The use of electronic conductivity devices can effectively reduce radiation exposure in vertebral body tethering.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 · 2023
    Article
  12. The timing of tether breakage influences clinical results after VBT.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 · 2022
    Article
  13. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Daniel G HoernschemeyerUniversity of Missouri Women's and Children's Hospital, Columbia, MO, USA. hoernschemeyerd@health.missouri.edu.ORCID 0000-0002-8502-5754
Melanie E BoeyerDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Missouri, 204 N Keene St. Suite #102, Columbia, MO, 65201, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-7518-472X
Nicole M TweedyUniversity of Missouri Women's and Children's Hospital, Columbia, MO, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-1178-2912
John R WorleyDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Missouri, 204 N Keene St. Suite #102, Columbia, MO, 65201, USA.ORCID 0000-0001-6122-7979
Julia R CrimDepartment of Radiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-4619-5056
University of Missouri · USColumbia Orthopaedic Group · USUniversity of Missouri Health System · USUniversity of Missouri Women's and Children's Hospital · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeVertebral body tethering (VBT) has been reported as a safe and effective non-fusion surgical technique for the treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, but the postoperative health of the bone and soft tissues of the spine following instrumentation remains unknown. We aimed to evaluate pathoanatomy and degenerative changes of the spine in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis patients both prior to and two years following VBT.

methodsWe prospectively enrolled nine patients who underwent VBT for the treatment of progressive adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. All patients received preoperative and two-year postoperative magnetic resonance imaging of their spine; images were assessed for pathoanatomy (e.g. nucleus pulposus positioning and muscle atrophy) and degenerative changes (e.g. Schmorl nodes, endplate oedema, disc degeneration, and osteoarthritis) at each vertebral level between T1 and S1.

resultsFour patients (44%) exhibited a shift of the nucleus pulposus from an eccentric position at baseline towards midline at three or more levels, most of which were in the tethered region. Tethering did not affect preexisting fatty atrophy of multifidus. No patients exhibited postoperative Schmorl nodes, endplate oedema, or disc degeneration in either the tethered or untethered regions. Four patients (44%) presented with mild facet osteoarthritis in the lower lumbar spine, which did not change postoperatively. One patient developed moderate facet osteoarthritis at L5-S1.

conclusionsThese preliminary data indicate that VBT may not result in significant degenerative changes in either the intervertebral discs or the posterior facets two years following instrumentation.

Indexed as

Intervertebral DiscIntervertebral Disc DegenerationScoliosisSpinal FusionAdolescentHumansLumbar VertebraeVertebral BodyAdjacent segment diseaseDisc degenerationNon-Fusion surgical techniquePathoanatomyScoliosis

Identifiers

PMID34494139
OpenAlexW3196616158

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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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.