Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38809440›Full record

ArticleEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2024

Erector spinae could be the game changer in surgical decision-making in patients with lumbar spondylolisthesis: a cross-sectional analysis of an age-, sex-, subtype-, level-matched patients with similar spinopelvic parameters received surgical or conservative management.

Murat Şakir Ekşi, Uğur Ozan Öztaş, Fatma Topaloğlu, Sidar Cenk Yeşilyurt, Umut Can Duymaz, Mahmoud Osama, Emel Ece Özcan-Ekşi

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In one paragraph

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, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed, 3 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
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

11 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Extent of fatty infiltration in lumbar paraspinal muscles in adults with degenerative scoliosis: segmental differences in muscle involvement.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
    Pooled it
  4. Return to sports after lumbar disc herniation surgery: a survey of German surgeons and postoperative patient experiences.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
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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

7 authors.

Murat Şakir EkşiFatih Sultan Mehmet Training and Research Hospital, Neurosurgery Clinic, Istanbul, Türkiye, Turkey. muratsakireksi@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3036-0061
Uğur Ozan ÖztaşFatih Sultan Mehmet Training and Research Hospital, Neurosurgery Clinic, Istanbul, Türkiye, Turkey.
Fatma TopaloğluFatih Sultan Mehmet Training and Research Hospital, Neurosurgery Clinic, Istanbul, Türkiye, Turkey.
Sidar Cenk YeşilyurtFatih Sultan Mehmet Training and Research Hospital, Neurosurgery Clinic, Istanbul, Türkiye, Turkey.
Umut Can DuymazFatih Sultan Mehmet Training and Research Hospital, Neurosurgery Clinic, Istanbul, Türkiye, Turkey.
Mahmoud OsamaNasser Institute for Research and Treatment, Department of Neurosurgery, Cairo, Egypt.
Emel Ece Özcan-EkşiPhysical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Acıbadem Bağdat Caddesi Medical Center, Istanbul, Türkiye, Turkey.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeIn this study we aimed to identify whether paraspinal muscle morphology could play a role in surgical decision-making in patients with lumbar spondylolisthesis.

methodsWe conducted a cross-sectional analysis of a prospectively collected database between January 2013 and May 2023. Consecutive women and men, who visited our outpatient clinics with chronic LBP, neurogenic claudication, and had lumbar spine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for their complaints were included into the preliminary dataset. We compared the patients who had conservative management (conservative group) or underwent surgery for lumbar spondylolisthesis (surgical group) in terms of intervertebral disc degeneration, end-plate changes, fatty infiltration in the paraspinal muscles and spinopelvic parameters.

resultsConservative and surgical groups were similar in terms of severe IVDD and Modic changes at any lumbar level. Surgical group had significantly fattier erector spinae compared to the conservative group. Regression analysis and ROC analysis revealed an OR of 1.088 and a cut-off value of 17 points for fatty infiltration in the erector spinae to predict which patient could undergo surgery for lumbar spondylolisthesis.

conclusionEach 1-point increment in fatty infiltration in the erector spinae at any lumbar level increased the likelihood of surgery by 8%. Lumbar spondylolisthesis patients with fatty infiltration score for erector spinae at or above 17 were more likely to have surgery. We recommend clinicians to focus on improving erector spinae muscles in patients with lumbar spondylolisthesis.

Indexed as

Conservative TreatmentLumbar VertebraeParaspinal MusclesSpondylolisthesisAdultAgedClinical Decision-MakingCross-Sectional StudiesFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedErector spinaeLow back painParaspinal musclesSpondylolisthesisSurgery

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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.