ReviewGlobal spine journal2023
Modic Changes of the Cervical and Lumbar Spine and Their Effect on Neck and Back Pain: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.
Review in Global spine journal, 2023. 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.
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
14 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence, risk factors, natural history, and prognostic significance of Modic changes in the cervical spine: a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis of 12,754 participants.Neurosurgical review · 2024Pooled it
- Development and validation of a nomogram prediction model for assessing cage subsidence risk following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2026Article
- Influence of Modic changes on short-term clinical and patient-reported outcomes after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: a retrospective cohort study.Frontiers in neurology · 2026Article
- Article
- Immune-neural crosstalk in chronic low back pain: from intervertebral disc degeneration to pain sensitization.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Prevalence of modic changes in patients with low back pain and association with degenerative spinal findings: a retrospective MRI study.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2025Article
- A step-by-step guide for systematic reviews and meta-analyses in spine surgery-study execution: a narrative review.Journal of spine surgery (Hong Kong) · 2025Review
- Modic Changes as Biomarkers for Treatment of Chronic Low Back Pain.Biomedicines · 2025Review
- Expression of lipid metabolism and cartilage degeneration-related factors in lumbar vertebral endplate Modic changes.Joint diseases and related surgery · 2025Article
- Mechanisms and Factors Influencing Resorption of Herniated Part of Lumbar Disc Herniation: Comprehensive Review.Journal of inflammation research · 2025Review
- Exploring the impact of macrophage polarization and Modic changes on baseline clinical condition in radiculopathy due to lumbar disc herniation.Brain & spine · 2025Article
- Limited discectomy versus aggressive discectomy by spinal endoscopy with the transforaminal approach for lumbar disc herniation: a retrospective study.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Article
- Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Assessment of the Clinical Efficacy of the Combination of Acupressure and "Three Methods of Neck Movement (TCM)" Therapy in the Treatment of Cervical Spondylosis: A Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of pain research · 2024Article
- Autologous Platelet-Rich Plasma Administration on the Intervertebral Disc in Low Back Pain Patients with Modic Type 1 Change: Report of Two Cases.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 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
9 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
STUDY
designSystematic Review.
objectivesTo systematically review the current literature and perform a meta-analysis on patients with cervical or lumbar spine Modic changes to determine if their baseline axial back pain and disability are comparable to patients without Modic changes.
methodsA systematic review of the PubMed database was conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines. A meta-analysis was performed to compare the mean differences in back pain, leg pain, and disability based on the presence of cervical or lumbar spine Modic changes. A subgroup analysis of the different types of Modic changes was conducted to determine if Modic type affected back pain or disability.
results- After review of 259 articles, 17 studies were included for meta-analysis and ten studies were included for qualitative synthesis. In the lumbar spine, 10 high-quality studies analyzed Visual Analog Scale (VAS) back pain, 10 evaluated VAS leg pain, and 8 analyzed Oswestry Disability Index. VAS back pain (mean difference (MD), -.38; 95% CI, -.61 - .16) and Oswestry disability index (MD -2.52; 95% CI, -3.93 - -1.12) were significantly lower in patients without Modic changes. Modic change subtype was not associated with differences in patient-reported outcomes. Patients with cervical spine Modic changes did not experience more severe pain than those without MC.
conclusionsModic changes in the lumbar spine are not associated with clinically significant axial low back pain severity or patient disability. Similar to the lumbar spine, Modic changes in the cervical spine are not associated with symptom severity, but they are associated with pain duration.
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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.