Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37921994›Full record

ArticleOsteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA2024

Forearm bone mineral density predicts screw loosening after lumbar fusion similar to lumbar Hounsfield unit value in patients with lumbar spondylolisthesis.

Qian Chen, Zhen Tu, Youwei Ai, Wen Li, Jianwen Chen, Junfei Feng, Wei Deng, Ye Wang, Ping Jiang

Abstract read
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In one paragraph

Article in Osteoporosis international : a journal established as result of cooperation between the European Foundation for Osteoporosis and the National Osteoporosis Foundation of the USA, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
3.1field-weighted citation impact, top 9% 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

7 citing papers in PubMed, 12 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Multimodal model predicts screw loosening at user-specified postoperative time points after single-level lumbar interbody fusion.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 · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
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  5. New Challenges: Use and Interpretation of Radius Bone Mineral Density.The Journal of clinical endocrinology and metabolism · 2024
    Review
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  7. Review
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

9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Qian Chen *Department of Orthopaedics and Laboratory of Biological Tissue Engineering and Digital Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China.
Zhen Tu *Department of Urological Surgery, People's Hospital of Yuechi County, Guang'an, Sichuan, 638300, People's Republic of China.
Youwei Ai *Department of Orthopedic Surgery and Orthopedic Research Institute, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, Sichuan, China.
Wen LiDepartment of Orthopaedics and Laboratory of Biological Tissue Engineering and Digital Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China.
Jianwen ChenDepartment of Orthopaedics and Laboratory of Biological Tissue Engineering and Digital Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China.
Junfei FengDepartment of Orthopaedics and Laboratory of Biological Tissue Engineering and Digital Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China.
Wei DengDepartment of Orthopedics, Pidu District People's Hospital, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Chengdu Medical College, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611730, People's Republic of China.
Ye WangDepartment of Orthopaedics and Laboratory of Biological Tissue Engineering and Digital Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China. 329437759@qq.com.
Ping JiangDepartment of Orthopaedics and Laboratory of Biological Tissue Engineering and Digital Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College, Nanchong, Sichuan, China. 969888929@qq.com.
Affiliated Hospital of North Sichuan Medical College · CNChengdu Medical College · CNWest China Hospital of Sichuan University · CN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Preoperative bone density assessment is necessary to predict screw loosening. The forearm BMD is a useful predictor of BMD-related complications after lumbar operation. Our results show that the forearm BMD is as effective a predictor of screw loosening as the lumbar average HU value. Measurement of the forearm BMD may be a useful adjunct in predicting screw loosening following lumbar fusion. PURPOSE: To determine the relationship between forearm bone mineral density (BMD) and the risk of pedicle screw loosening in patients with lumbar spondylolisthesis.

methodsWe retrospectively evaluated 270 patients who underwent posterior lumbar interbody fusion for lumbar spondylolisthesis. The patients were divided into two groups on the basis of the with or without loose screws: the loosening group and the non-loosening group. The patient's gender, age, BMI, smoking and diabetes histories, and the operative segment were recorded as the basic information. The Hounsfield unit (HU) value for the BMD of the L1-4 lumbar was measured using computed tomography. The patient's distal one-third of the length of the radius and ulna of the non-dominant forearm was chosen as the site for dual-energy X-ray (DXA) bone density testing.

resultsThe rate of screw loosening was 13% at a minimum 12 months follow-up. Average forearm BMD (0.461 ± 0.1 vs 0.577 ± 0.1, p < 0.001) and mean HU value (L1-4) (121.1 ± 27.3 vs 155.6 ± 32.2, p < 0.001) were lower in the screw loosening group than those in the non-loosening group. In multivariate logistic regression analysis, the forearm BMD (OR 0.840; 95%CI 0.797-0.886) and HU value (L1-4) (OR 0.952; 95%CI 0.935-0.969) were independent risk factor for screw loosening. The area under the curve (AUC) for the forearm BMD and HU value for prediction of pedicle screw loosening was 0.802 and 0.811. The forearm BMD cut-off for predicting pedicle screw loosening was 0.543 (sensitivity, 0.800; specificity, 0.864).

conclusionsThe forearm BMD was an independent risk factor for loosening of the lumbar pedicle screws. The forearm BMD was a valid predictor of pedicle screw loosening in patients undergoing lumbar fusion, as was the CT HU value.

Indexed as

Pedicle ScrewsSpinal FusionSpondylolisthesisBone DensityForearmHumansLumbar VertebraeRetrospective StudiesForearm BMDHounsfield unitsPedicle screw looseningSpondylolisthesis

Identifiers

PMID37921994
OpenAlexW4388297666

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.