Observational studyJournal of orthopaedics and traumatology : official journal of the Italian Society of Orthopaedics and Traumatology2022
Frequency and characteristics of bacterial and viral low-grade infections of the intervertebral discs: a prospective, observational study.
Observational study in Journal of orthopaedics and traumatology : official journal of the Italian Society of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04712487 (Frequency and Characteristics of Low-grade Infections of the Intervertebral Discs), which is not on this map. Cited by 5 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.
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.
Frequency and Characteristics of Low-grade Infections of the Intervertebral Discs
Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- mNGS technique was used to analyze the microbiome structure of intervertebral disc tissue in 99 patients with degenerative disc disease.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
- Molecular Mechanisms of Intervertebral Disc Degeneration Induced byBioMed research international · 2025Review
- PositiveJournal of clinical medicine · 2024Article
- Causal effects of skin microbiota on intervertebral disk degeneration, low back pain and sciatica: a two-sample Mendelian randomization study.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2024Article
- WouldJournal of personalized medicine · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
15 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
STUDY
designMonocentric, prospective, observational study.
objectiveThe clinical relevance of bacterial colonization of intervertebral discs is controversial. This study aimed to determine a possible relationship between bacterial and viral colonization and low-grade infection of the discs.
methodsWe investigated 447 disc samples from 392 patients. Microbiological culture was used to examine the samples for bacterial growth, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used for detection of herpes simplex virus types 1 and 2 (HSV-1, HSV-2) and Cytomegalovirus (CMV), and histopathological analysis was used to detect signs of inflammation. The results were compared between subgroups organized according to gender, age, location of the samples, surgical approach, preoperative C-reactive protein (CRP), preoperative and 6 months postoperative Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and Neck Disability Index (NDI), and Modic changes (MC) of the corresponding endplates. Also, we assessed the occurrence of postoperative infections within 6 months.
resultsMicrobiological culture was positive in 38.78% of the analyzed intervertebral discs. Altogether, 180 bacteria were isolated. Coagulase-negative staphylococci (CONS) (23.41%) and Cutibacterium acnes (18.05%) were the most frequently detected microorganisms. None of HSV-1, HSV-2, or CMV were detected. Male patients (p = 0.00036) and cervical segments (p = 0.00001) showed higher rates of positive culture results. Ventral surgical approaches ( p < 0.001) and Type 2 MC (p = 0.0127) were significantly associated with a positive microbiological result ( p< 0.001). Neither pre- nor postoperative ODI and NDI are associated with positive culture results. In 4 (1.02%) patients, postoperative spondylodiscitis occurred.
conclusionsWith 447 segments from 392 patients, we present one of the largest studies to date. While disc degeneration caused by HSV-1, HSV-2, and CMV seems unlikely, we found positive microbiological culture results in 38.78% of all discs. The role of local skin flora and sample contamination should be the focus of further investigations. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: III.
trial registrationThe study was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (ID: NCT04712487, https://www. CLINICALTRIALS: gov/ct2/show/study/NCT04712487 ).
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