Impact of Muscle Degeneration in Chronic Low Back Pain
For patients and families
In plain language
An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.
- What is being studied
- The protocol lists: Lumbar decompressive surgery.
- Who it may be relevant to
- Registry conditions: Lumbar Spinal Stenosis, Lumbar Disc Herniation, Radiculopathy, Back Pain. Basic parameters: from 18 years · All.
- What needs checking
- Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
- Where it takes place
- Brazil
- Next step
- Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
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Official title
Impact of Muscle Degeneration in Chronic Ow Back Pain in Patients Undergoing Neural Decompression
Overview
Surgical interventions for the removal of intervertebral disc fragments or to enlarge a narrow spine canal are commonly performed worldwide and are considered efficient. Concomitant low back pain is not uncommon among patients with lumbar nerve compression and neurological symptoms. When present, controversy persists in the literature regarding its ideal management. Although neurological symptoms improve after decompressive surgery, the presence of residual chronic low back pain may worsen satisfaction scores and cause functional disability. The hypothesis of the present study is that the presence of atrophy of the paraspinal and trunk muscles predicts chronic low back pain after lumbar neural decompression. If confirmed, this finding will aid in better planning of physical rehabilitation strategies for this group of patients, as well as a clearer prediction regarding surgical treatment outcomes for patients and health professionals.
Detailed description
This is a prospective cohort study. Patients with lumbar degenerative diseases and symptoms of nerve compression (radiculopathy or neurogenic claudication) who will undergo surgical treatment for neural decompression (discectomy, foraminotomy or laminectomy).
The cohort will be followed by a team researcher (not blinded to the purpose of the study) at preoperative (up to 1 month before surgery), immediate postoperative (12 to 24 hours after procedure), 06, 12 and 24 months after surgery. Imaging tests will be performed on the preoperative evaluation and at six months follow-up after the operation.
The treatment will consist of lumbar decompression surgery, which may consist of discectomy, foraminotomy or laminectomy, according to the type and location of the compression. The choice of surgical technique will be made by the assistant surgeon.
Patients will be divided into four groups regarding the type of soft tissue retractor and image magnification:
Group 1: (minimally invasive microdiscectomy): surgeries performed with loupes or microscope plus minimally invasive soft tissue retractors (tubular or "Caspar").
Group 2: (open microdiscectomy) surgeries performed with loupes or microscope plus conventional soft tissue retractors (auto static, "Taylor" or "McCulloch").
Group 3: (endoscopic discectomy): surgeries performed by means of the "full endoscopic" technique;
Group 4: (open discectomy "with the naked eye"): surgeries performed without image magnification. Use of conventional soft tissue retractors (auto static, "Taylor" or "McCulloch").
Image Evaluation:
1. X-Rays (anteroposterior, lateral, dynamic lateral films) - to evaluate and measure the presence of scoliosis, spondylolisthesis or Degenerative vertebral dislocations. 2. MRI: to detect and to grade the presence of fat infiltration of the Psoas and Multifidus muscles (Arabanas et al); to grade Modic Signal and facet joint degeneration (Weishaupt et al).
Sample size:
For the sample size estimation, we considered the main outcome of the study, a 1.5-point change in the pain scale (VAS) among patients with fat infiltration (grades 1, 2, or 3) and without fat infiltration (grade 0), after 6 months of spine surgery, with 80% power and 95% confidence, the sample required for the study is 28 patients in each group considering a two-tailed test. Similarly to the previous study, we observed that the first 14 patients in the pilot study, 20% of patients had without fat infiltration, therefore, as the admission of patients into the study is consecutive, we expect to find this same percentage of patients without fat infiltration in the final sample of patients, so 140 patients are needed to get 28 patients without fat infiltration. Predicting a loss of 20% of patients at 6 months of follow-up, the initial sample to be considered will be 168 patients to obtain the minimum number of patients required in each group.
Statistics:
Numerical variables with normal distribution will be described by means and standard deviations and variables with non-normal distribution by medians and interquartile ranges, in addition to the minimum and maximum values. The distributions of numerical variables will be verified by histograms, boxplots, and, if necessary, Shapiro-Wilk normality tests. Categorical variables will be described by absolute frequencies and percentages. The analyzes will be performed with the SPSS26 program, considering a 5% significance level.
Interventions
- Procedure Lumbar decompressive surgery
Patients with lumbar degenerative diseases and symptoms of nerve compression (radiculopathy or neurogenic claudication) who will undergo surgical treatment for neural decompression (discectomy, foraminotomy or laminectomy).
Primary outcome measures
- Change in Pain Intensity [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
Secondary outcome measures (7)
- Radiological evaluation [Time frame: Baseline and 6 month after surgery]
- Change in Kinesiophobia [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
- Change in Psychosocial Risk Prognosis [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
- Change in Global Impression of Recovery [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
- Change in Mood Disorders in The setting of Medical Practice [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
- Change in Disability [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
- Change in Quality life [Time frame: Baseline, 3, 6, 12 and 24 months after surgery]
Eligibility criteria
Inclusion criteria
- adults 18 years of age and older;
- with symptoms of lumbosacral neural compression (radiculopathy or neurogenic lameness);
- failed conservative treatment for at least 6 weeks;
- undergoing surgery for neural decompression (discectomy and / or foraminotomy and / or hemilaminectomy);
- with complete pre and postoperative medical records in all evaluations.
Exclusion criteria
- need for lumbar arthrodesis;
- deep infection requiring surgical cleaning;
- patients submitted to joint facet rhizotomy;
- active rheumatologic disease, including seronegative arthropathies.
Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.
Healthy volunteers: No
Study design
- Observational model
- Cohort
Study locations
Brazil · 1 center
- Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein — São Paulo
Publications
- Bae HW, Rajaee SS, Kanim LE. Nationwide trends in the surgical management of lumbar spinal stenosis. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2013 May 15;38(11):916-26. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e3182833e7c. PMID 23324922
- Kovacs FM, Urrutia G, Alarcon JD. Surgery versus conservative treatment for symptomatic lumbar spinal stenosis: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2011 Sep 15;36(20):E1335-51. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0b013e31820c97b1. PMID 21311394
- Jacobs WC, van Tulder M, Arts M, Rubinstein SM, van Middelkoop M, Ostelo R, Verhagen A, Koes B, Peul WC. Surgery versus conservative management of sciatica due to a lumbar herniated disc: a systematic review. Eur Spine J. 2011 Apr;20(4):513-22. doi: 10.1007/s00586-010-1603-7. Epub 2010 Oct 15. PMID 20949289
- Bydon M, De la Garza-Ramos R, Macki M, Baker A, Gokaslan AK, Bydon A. Lumbar fusion versus nonoperative management for treatment of discogenic low back pain: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. J Spinal Disord Tech. 2014 Jul;27(5):297-304. doi: 10.1097/BSD.0000000000000072. PMID 24346052
- Hansen L, de Zee M, Rasmussen J, Andersen TB, Wong C, Simonsen EB. Anatomy and biomechanics of the back muscles in the lumbar spine with reference to biomechanical modeling. Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2006 Aug 1;31(17):1888-99. doi: 10.1097/01.brs.0000229232.66090.58. PMID 16924205
- Freeman MD, Woodham MA, Woodham AW. The role of the lumbar multifidus in chronic low back pain: a review. PM R. 2010 Feb;2(2):142-6; quiz 1 p following 167. doi: 10.1016/j.pmrj.2009.11.006. PMID 20193941
- Walker BF. The prevalence of low back pain: a systematic review of the literature from 1966 to 1998. J Spinal Disord. 2000 Jun;13(3):205-17. doi: 10.1097/00002517-200006000-00003. PMID 10872758
- von Elm E, Altman DG, Egger M, Pocock SJ, Gotzsche PC, Vandenbroucke JP; STROBE Initiative. The Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) statement: guidelines for reporting observational studies. J Clin Epidemiol. 2008 Apr;61(4):344-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jclinepi.2007.11.008. PMID 18313558
Identifiers
NCT: NCT04273828 · 94868618.7.0000.0071