Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39453543›Full record

Trial reportEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2025

Postoperative early initiation of sequential exercise program in preventing persistent spinal pain syndrome type-2 after modified transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion: a prospective randomized controlled trial.

Cong Nie, Kaiwen Chen, Mei Huang, Yu Zhu, Jianyuan Jiang, Xinlei Xia, Chaojun Zheng

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report 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, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed, 1 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

3 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. MRI-based endplate bone quality scoring system in cervical OPLL: a novel measuring method predicting titanium mesh cage subsidence following ACCF.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
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.

Cong Nie *Department of Orthopedics, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, 12 Mid- Wulumuqi Road, Shanghai, 200040, China.
Kaiwen Chen *Department of Orthopedics, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, 12 Mid- Wulumuqi Road, Shanghai, 200040, China.
Mei Huang *Department of Nursing, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200040, China.
Yu ZhuDepartment of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Upstate Medical University, State University of New York at Syracuse, Syracuse, NY, 10212, USA.
Jianyuan JiangDepartment of Orthopedics, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, 12 Mid- Wulumuqi Road, Shanghai, 200040, China.
Xinlei XiaDepartment of Orthopedics, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, 12 Mid- Wulumuqi Road, Shanghai, 200040, China.
Chaojun ZhengDepartment of Orthopedics, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, 12 Mid- Wulumuqi Road, Shanghai, 200040, China. CJZheng17@fudan.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-1165-2528

Funding

Science and Technology Innovation Plan Of Shanghai Science and Technology Commission 22s31900600
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeThis prospective randomized controlled trial aimed to investigate the impact of early postoperative sequential motor control (starting first day post-operatively) and core stabilization training (starting fifth week post-operatively) compared to conventional exercise (starting fifth weeks post-operatively) on the risk of developing persistent spinal pain syndrome type-2 (PSPS-T2).

methods395 patients with lumbar degenerative diseases (LDDs) undergoing modified transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion and a 12-week postoperative exercise program (sequential vs. conventional exercise: 214 vs. 181) were evaluated for low back pain (LBP) intensity, Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), pressure pain threshold (PPT), temporal summation (TS), fatty infiltration of paraspinal muscles, transversus abdominis (TrA) activation capacity and Fear-Avoidance Beliefs Questionnaire (FABQ) pre-operatively, 3 months post-operatively, and 1 year post-operatively.

resultsAt 3-month postoperative assessment, LBP in sequential exercise group were lower than those in conventional exercise group (P < 0.05), and sequential-exercise patients had greater local-area PPTs, lower TS, lower TrA activation capacities and less fatty infiltration of erector spinae than did the conventional-exercise patients (P < 0.05). At 1-year postoperative assessment, fewer sequential-exercise patients had PSPS-T2 compared with conventional-exercise patients (11/214 vs. 20/181; P < 0.05). LBP at rest and FABQ were lower in sequential-exercise patients than conventional-exercise patients (P < 0.05). Furthermore, both PPT and TS at 1-year postoperative assessment were associated with these measurements at 3-month postoperative assessment in patients with PSPS-T2 (P < 0.05).

conclusionsPostoperative sequential exercise has more positive effects to avoid PSPS-T2 than conventional exercise in patients with LDDs possibly because of its advantages in improving central and peripheral sensitization.

Indexed as

Exercise TherapyLow Back PainLumbar VertebraePostoperative CarePostoperative ComplicationsSpinal FusionAdultAgedFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedPain MeasurementProspective StudiesCentral sensitizationExercisePeripheral sensitizationPersistent spinal pain syndrome type-2

Identifiers

PMID39453543

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.