ArticleAsian spine journal2024
Lumbar Transforaminal Injection of Steroids versus Platelet-Rich Plasma for Prolapse Lumbar Intervertebral Disc with Radiculopathy: A Randomized Double-Blind Controlled Pilot Study.
Article in Asian spine journal, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 14 citations in OpenAlex.
- A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials of Epidural Regenerative Medicine Therapies in Managing Spinal Pain.Current pain and headache reports · 2026Pooled it
- Platelet-Rich Plasma vs. Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Lumbar Disc Degeneration: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Pooled it
- Application and mechanism of percutaneous puncture disc platelet-rich plasma injection for lumbar disc herniation: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2025Pooled it
- Is platelet-rich plasma better than steroids as epidural drug of choice in lumbar disc disease with radiculopathy? Meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Experimental biology and medicine (Maywood, N.J.) · 2025Pooled it
- Platelet-rich Plasma for the Treatment of Neuropathic Pain: A Systematic Review.Current drug research reviews · 2025Pooled it
- Platelet-rich plasma and stem cell therapies for spondylosis: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.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 · 2026Review
- Efficacy of intradiscal autologous platelet-rich plasma injection in chronic lumbar disc prolapse: A quasi-experimental study.World journal of orthopedics · 2025Article
- Effectiveness of intradiscal steroid injection for spinal stenosis: a retrospective cohort study in South Korea.Asian spine journal · 2025Article
- Lumbar disc herniation reabsorption: a review of clinical manifestations, mechanisms, and conservative treatments.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Review
- Article
- Letter to the Editor: Lumbar transforaminal injection of steroids versus platelet-rich plasma for prolapse lumbar intervertebral disc with radiculopathy: a randomized double-blind controlled pilot study.Asian spine journal · 2024Article
- Response to the Letter to the Editor: Lumbar transforaminal injection of steroids versus platelet-rich plasma for prolapse lumbar intervertebral disc with radiculopathy: a randomized double-blind controlled pilot study.Asian spine journal · 2024Article
- Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
STUDY
designDouble-blind randomized controlled pilot study. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes of steroids with autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) administered by lumbar transforaminal injection (LTI) in patients with lumbar radiculopathy. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE: Degenerative disc disease of the lumbar spine is one of the most common conditions managed by spine surgeons in routine practice. Once conservative management fails, LTI is diagnostic and often therapeutic. Steroids are the gold standard drug used for LTI but have limitations and side effects.
methodsIn this single-center double-blind randomized controlled pilot study, 46 patients were recruited and randomized by the lottery method. The Visual Analog Scale (VAS) for leg pain, modified Oswestry Disability Index (mODI), and Short-Form 12 (SF-12) were assessed at 1 week, 3 weeks, 6 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year.
resultsBoth groups were comparable in terms of demographics, preprocedure VAS scores, mODI, and SF-12 scores (p=0.52). At the 1-week follow-up, the steroid group had significantly better improvement than the PRP group (p=0.0001). At the 3-week follow-up, both groups showed comparable outcomes; however, the PRP group had better symptom improvement. At 6 weeks and 6 months, the PRP group had better outcomes (VAS, p<0.0001; ODI, p=0.02; SF-12, p=0.002). Moreover, 17 and 16 patients in the steroid and PRP groups underwent repeat LTI with steroids or surgery because of pain recurrence during follow-up. At 1 year, no difference in outcomes was observed.
conclusionsPRP may be a useful alternative to steroids for LTI in lumbar radiculopathy. Although improvement was delayed and 1-year outcomes were comparable, the 6-week and 6-month outcomes were better with PRP than with LTI. Multiple PRP injections may be beneficial because of its autologous nature. However, further studies with a larger number of participants, longer follow-up, and repeat LTIs are warranted to draw definite conclusions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
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.