ArticleEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2023
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) identification of chemically painful lumbar discs leads to improved 6-, 12-, and 24-month outcomes for discogenic low back pain surgeries.
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, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 6 papers.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.
- Diagnostic Features of Discogenic Low Back Pain: A Narrative Review and Suggested Areas for Future Research and Clinical Practice.JOR spine · 2026Review
- Article
- The design and rationale of the Biomarkers for Evaluating Spine Treatments trial: a sequential multiple assignment randomized trial.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2025Article
- A Proposed Diagnostic and Treatment Algorithm for the Management of Lumbar Discogenic Pain.Journal of pain research · 2025Article
- The Comparison of Cost-Effectiveness Between Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy and Provocative Discography in the Identification of Chronic Low Back Pain Surgery Candidates.ClinicoEconomics and outcomes research : CEOR · 2025Article
- Defining the Patient with Lumbar Discogenic Pain: Real-World Implications for Diagnosis and Effective Clinical Management.Journal of personalized medicine · 2023Article
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeMRS was shown to reliably quantify relative levels of degenerative pain biomarkers, differentiating painful versus non-painful discs in patients with chronic discogenic low back pain (DLBP), and this correlates with surgical success rates. We now report results based on more patients and longer follow-up.
methodsDisc MRS was performed in DLBP patients who subsequently received lumbar surgery. Custom post-processing (NOCISCAN-LS®; Aclarion Inc.) calculated disc-specific NOCISCORES® that reflect relative differences in degenerative pain biomarkers for diagnosing chemically painful discs. Outcomes in 78 patients were evaluated using Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores. Surgical success (≥ 15-point ODI improvement) was compared between surgeries that were "Concordant" (Group C) versus "Discordant" (Group D) with NOCISCORE-based diagnosis for painful discs.
resultsSuccess rates were higher for Group C versus Group D: 6 months (88% vs. 62%; p = 0.01), 12 months (91% vs. 56%; p < 0.001), and 24 months (85% vs. 63%; p = 0.07). Success rates for Group C surgeries were also higher than Group D surgeries in a variety of sub-group comparisons. Group C had a greater reduction in ODI from pre-operative to follow-up than Group D [absolute change (% change), (p)]: 6 months: - 35 (- 61%) versus - 23 (- 39%), (p < 0.05); 12 months: - 39 (- 69%) versus - 22 (- 39%), (p < 0.01); and 24 months: - 38 (- 66%) versus - 26 (- 48%), (p < 0.05).
conclusionMore successful, sustained outcomes were obtained when surgically treating chemically painful discs identified by NOCISCAN-LS post-processed disc MRS exams. Results suggest that NOCISCAN-LS provides a valuable new diagnostic tool to help clinicians better select treatment levels.
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