ArticleThe Laryngoscope2026
National Trends and Risk Factors for Dysphagia After Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion.
Article in The Laryngoscope, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
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
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundDysphagia remains one of the most common complications following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF), yet recent national trends and risk factors across surgical indications have not been fully characterized.
objectiveTo evaluate national trends in ACDF and dysphagia rates and to identify patient, surgical, and indication-specific risk factors for postoperative dysphagia.
methodsA retrospective analysis of the Nationwide Inpatient Sample identified adult patients undergoing elective ACDF from 2016 to 2022. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine independent risk factors for dysphagia and develop a predictive nomogram. Separate models were also constructed for single- and multilevel ACDF.
resultsAmong 496,425 hospitalizations, dysphagia occurred in 7.7% of patients. Despite a 57.3% decline in ACDF, the odds of dysphagia increased at an estimated 11.4% annually (OR: 1.11, 95% CI: 1.09-1.13; p < 0.001). Cervical diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis (OR: 5.41; 95% CI: 3.81-7.67), cervical spine fracture (OR: 1.73; 95% CI: 1.31-2.30), and pseudoarthrosis (OR: 1.36; 95% CI: 1.15-1.61) were strong independent predictors of dysphagia. Additional risk factors included racial minority status, higher comorbidity burden, and care at urban teaching hospitals. Risk factors differed between single- and multilevel ACDF. Dysphagia was associated with higher rates of complications, including aspiration pneumonia, percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy placement, and tracheostomy (all p < 0.001).
conclusionsThese findings represent the first national analysis to demonstrate a decline in inpatient ACDF volumes yet rising postoperative dysphagia rates. Selective surgical indications emerged as key predictors, informing the development of a nomogram for risk stratification and preoperative optimization in ACDF patients. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3:
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.