Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37864565›Full record

ArticleGlobal spine journal2025

Do Grip Strength Dynamometer Readings Improve After Cervical Spine Surgery?

Scott L Zuckerman, Jacob L Goldberg, Meghan Cerpa, Meghana Vulapalli, Mychael W Delgardo, Xena E Flowers, Sandra Leskinen, Mena G Kerolus, Ian A Buchanan, Alex S Ha and 1 more

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Global spine journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
0.4field-weighted citation impact, top 32% 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

2 citing papers in PubMed, 2 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
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

11 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Scott L ZuckermanDepartment of Neurologic Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-2951-2942
Jacob L GoldbergDepartment of Neurological Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA.ORCID 0000-0003-0827-9387
Meghan CerpaDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Spine Hospital at New York Presbyterian, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
Meghana VulapalliDepartment of Neurological Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA.
Mychael W DelgardoDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Spine Hospital at New York Presbyterian, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
Xena E FlowersDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Spine Hospital at New York Presbyterian, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
Sandra LeskinenDepartment of Orthopaedic Surgery, The Spine Hospital at New York Presbyterian, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.
Mena G KerolusDepartment of Neurological Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-0902-6528
Ian A BuchananDepartment of Neurological Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA.
Alex S HaDepartment of Neurological Surgery, Weill Cornell Medical Center/New York Presbyterian Hospital, New York, NY, USA.
K Daniel RiewDepartment of Neurologic Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA.ORCID 0000-0002-0718-3423
NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital · USColumbia University Irving Medical Center · US

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

STUDY

designRetrospective, cohort study.

objectivesHand function can be difficult to objectively assess perioperatively. In patients undergoing cervical spine surgery by a single-surgeon, we sought to: (1) use a hand dynamometer to report pre/postoperative grip strength, (2) distinguish grip strength changes in patients with radiculopathy-only vs myelopathy, and (3) assess predictors of grip strength improvement.

methodsDemographic and operative data were collected for patients who underwent surgery 2015-2018. Hand dynamometer readings were pre/postoperatively at three follow-up time periods (0-3 m, 3-6 m, 6-12 m).

results262 patients (mean age of 59 ± 14 years; 37% female) underwent the following operations: ACDF (80%), corpectomy (25%), laminoplasty (19%), and posterior cervical fusion (7%), with 81 (31%) patients undergoing multiple operations in a single anesthetic setting. Radiculopathy-only was seen in 128 (49%) patients, and myelopathy was seen 134 (51%) patients. 110 (42%) had improved grip strength by ≥10-lbs, including 69/128 (54%) in the radiculopathy-only group, and 41/134 (31%) in the myelopathy group. Those most likely to improve grip strength were patients undergoing ACDF (OR 2.53,

conclusionsGrip strength significantly improved in 42% of patients. Patients with radiculopathy were more likely to improve than those with myelopathy. Patients undergoing surgery from the C2/3-C5/6 levels and the C6/7-T1/2 levels both significantly improved grip strength at 3-month postoperatively.

Indexed as

anterior cervical discectomy and fusionanterior corpectomycervical spine surgerydynamometergrip strength

Identifiers

PMID37864565
PMCPMC11696972
OpenAlexW4387844794

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.