ReviewNorth American Spine Society journal2025
Postoperative complications of anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: A comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis.
Review in North American Spine Society journal, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 21 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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
21 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Bibliometric study of research trends in dysphagia complicating following anterior cervical spine surgery.Frontiers in surgery · 2025Pooled it
- Do glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists influence cervical fusion outcomes? A systematic review and meta-analysis.North American Spine Society journal · 2026Review
- Testosterone Replacement Therapy is Associated With Increased Risk of Pseudarthrosis After Single-Level Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: A Propensity Matched Analysis.Global spine journal · 2026Article
- Thyroid Obstacle During Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: When to Call Your ENT Surgeon Fellow? A Scoping Review of Individual Patient Data.Asian journal of neurosurgery · 2026Review
- National Trends and Risk Factors for Dysphagia After Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion.The Laryngoscope · 2026Article
- Impact of Immunosuppression Type on 30-Day Postoperative Outcomes Following Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion: A Retrospective National Cohort Study of 66,162 Patients.Global spine journal · 2026Article
- Construct length rather than interbody spacer material is associated with reoperation after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion.European journal of orthopaedic surgery & traumatology : orthopedie traumatologie · 2026Article
- Single-level cervical disc arthroplasty is associated with higher early subsequent surgery rates and similar adjacent segment disease rates compared with anterior cervical discectomy and fusion.Journal of spine surgery (Hong Kong) · 2026Article
- Surgical outcomes in cervical spondylotic myelopathy with severe cord compression and intramedullary signal changes: a retrospective descriptive study.European journal of orthopaedic surgery & traumatology : orthopedie traumatologie · 2026Article
- Cervical Disc Replacement Does Not Increase Revision or Reoperation Risk Compared With Fusion in Osteoporotic Women: A Retrospective Matched Cohort Study.Global spine journal · 2026Article
- High rates of spin bias in systematic reviews regarding anterior cervical discectomy and fusionJournal of spine surgery (Hong Kong) · 2026Review
- Revision Total Ankle Arthroplasty Using the INVISION Modular Implant System: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Foot & ankle orthopaedics · 2026Article
- Clinical Outcomes Following Cervical Fusion in Patients with Dialysis-Related Spondyloarthropathy: A Systematic Review.Spine surgery and related research · 2026Review
- Interpreting nonsignificant findings: Reassessing the safety of self-locking standalone cages in octogenarian patients undergoing ACDF.Journal of orthopaedics and traumatology : official journal of the Italian Society of Orthopaedics and Traumatology · 2026Article
- Impact of cage type on subsidence following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: a retrospective study.Asian spine journal · 2026Article
- Posterior hypopharyngeal perforation following two-level anterior cervical discectomy and fusion: illustrative case.Journal of neurosurgery. Case lessons · 2026Article
- A hydroxyapatite-based synthetic bone graft reduces intervertebral motion at 12 months, as measured by CT-RSA, in a porcine model of ACDF.Brain & spine · 2026Article
- Article
- Retrospective evaluation of ERAS-guided rehabilitation nursing in anterior cervical discectomy and fusion patients.Frontiers in medicine · 2025Article
- Mechanism-guided biomaterial strategies for intervertebral disc degeneration: Pathological heterogeneity, functional classification, and translational perspectives.Journal of tissue engineeringReview
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Background: Anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF) is one of the most frequently performed spine procedures for different indications in the cervical spine. Various postoperative complications have been reported following the ACDF. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to calculate the incidence rate of different postoperative complications associated with ACDF surgery and also identify underlying risk factors for each complication. Methods: A systematic review of the literature was performed in PubMed/MEDLINE, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for observational studies published between January 1996 and March 2023 and reporting postoperative complications associated with ACDF. Randomized controlled trials and interventional investigations were not included in this study. Meta-regression was also performed using generalized linear mixed models with a binomial probability distribution on various potential predicting factors. Results: A total of 222 studies reporting the rate of complications associated with ACDF in 50,584 patients were included in the present study. The overall postoperative complication rate was 16%. The most common complications were excessive neck swelling (11.3%), pseudarthrosis (10.0%), dysphagia (9.5%), cage/graft subsidence (9.4%), worsening myelopathy (7.7%), and hoarseness (2.3%). The rate of nonhome discharge, readmission, and mortality were 13.8%, 3.7%, and 0.1% respectively. Based on meta-regression, more levels of fusion and increased age were significantly associated with an increase in the pooled overall postoperative complication rate. Moreover, the rate of some postoperative complications was significantly associated with a number of perioperative characteristics. Conclusions: To our knowledge, this study has been the most extensive meta-analysis conducted on the existing literature regarding ACDF-related complications and potential risk factors. However, future high-quality prospective studies or clinical trials are highly required to provide further evidence and also validate the present findings.
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Registered trials
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