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Clinical Progress of Spine Surgery

A special issue of Journal of Clinical Medicine (ISSN 2077-0383). This special issue belongs to the section "Clinical Neurology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 February 2026 | Viewed by 2126

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Guest Editor
Department of Neurosurgery, IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, 00144 Rome, Italy
Interests: neuro-oncology; degenerative spine surgery; functional neurosurgery; pain surgery; image-guided surgery; intraoperative imaging
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Guest Editor
Operative Research Unit of Orthopaedic and Trauma Surgery, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Campus Bio-Medico, Via Alvaro del Portillo 200, 00128 Rome, Italy
Interests: spine surgery; orthopedic surgery; intervertebral disk degeneration
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Spine surgery is continuously evolving, especially in the last few years. Recent technological advancement has greatly pushed this progress in patient selection, surgical planning, intra-operative imaging, operative room equipment and post-operative care. New and old techniques are being progressively improved over the years to provide less invasive and more efficient surgical treatments. On the other hand, the ageing population and the availability of new treatments for cancer patients have progressively broadened the number of patients who can benefit from surgery both for degenerative and neoplastic conditions, thus posing new challenges to clinicians and researchers. In this Special Issue, we welcome authors to submit papers regarding the progress in the management of spine patients. 

Dr. Edoardo Mazzucchi
Dr. Gianluca Vadalà
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • spine surgery
  • rehabilitation
  • robotic surgery
  • spinal endoscopy
  • spinal tumor
  • back pain
  • minimally invasive surgery
  • spinal fusion

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 2441 KB  
Article
Comparative Radiologic and Morphologic Analysis of Posterolateral Fusion and Percutaneous Pedicle Screw Fixation for Thoracolumbar Junction Burst Fractures
by Hyung-Rae Lee, Minseung Kang, Jae Min Park and Jae-Hyuk Yang
J. Clin. Med. 2025, 14(18), 6379; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14186379 - 10 Sep 2025
Viewed by 265
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Thoracolumbar burst fractures often require surgical stabilization. Although posterolateral fusion (PLF) has been traditionally used, percutaneous posterior fixation (PPF) without fusion has emerged as a less invasive alternative. However, comparative data specifically addressing PPF and PLF are limited. This study aimed to [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Thoracolumbar burst fractures often require surgical stabilization. Although posterolateral fusion (PLF) has been traditionally used, percutaneous posterior fixation (PPF) without fusion has emerged as a less invasive alternative. However, comparative data specifically addressing PPF and PLF are limited. This study aimed to compare the radiological and perioperative outcomes of PPF and PLF for thoracolumbar burst fractures. Methods: This retrospective cohort study analyzed 61 patients with T11–L2 burst fractures (PPF, 28; PLF, 33). Radiological parameters included local and global sagittal alignment and vertebral height ratio. Fracture morphology was assessed using a structured grading system based on anterior height ratios. Perioperative variables were also assessed. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Results: PPF demonstrated significant advantages in operative time (160.7 min vs. 205.8 min, p < 0.01) and blood loss (165 cc vs. 317 cc, p < 0.01), with a shorter hospitalization time. PPF achieved outcomes comparable to PLF in global alignment and anterior height restoration. The PLF group showed greater local kyphotic angle correction (−7.77° vs. −1.53°, p = 0.01), whereas the PPF group showed significantly higher postoperative posterior height ratio (p = 0.02). Changes in morphological grades, assessed using the anterior height ratio-based grading system, showed similar patterns of improvement in both groups. All implant removals were performed due to patient-reported discomfort. Conclusions: PPF yielded radiological outcomes comparable to PLF in the treatment of thoracolumbar burst fractures. The use of a morphological grading system provided a structured descriptive tool to evaluate surgical impact, though its utility remains exploratory and requires further validation. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Clinical Progress of Spine Surgery)
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13 pages, 1127 KB  
Article
Comparative Efficacy of Percutaneous Laser Disc Decompression (PLDD) and Conservative Therapy for Lumbar Disc Herniation: A Retrospective, Observational, Single-Center Study
by Domenico Policicchio, Benedetta Boniferro, Erica Lo Turco, Giuseppe Mauro, Antonio Veraldi, Virginia Vescio, Giuseppe Vescio and Giosuè Dipellegrini
J. Clin. Med. 2025, 14(12), 4235; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14124235 - 14 Jun 2025
Viewed by 1326
Abstract
Background: Although percutaneous laser disc decompression (PLDD) has been proposed as an alternative to conventional surgery for lumbar disc herniation (LDH), we specifically propose it for patients with contained herniations where standard surgical intervention is not the first option. This study evaluates PLDD [...] Read more.
Background: Although percutaneous laser disc decompression (PLDD) has been proposed as an alternative to conventional surgery for lumbar disc herniation (LDH), we specifically propose it for patients with contained herniations where standard surgical intervention is not the first option. This study evaluates PLDD compared to conservative therapy as an early treatment alternative. Methods: This retrospective observational study compared PLDD to conservative treatment in adult patients with contained LDH. All patients underwent 3 months of standard conservative therapy. Those who remained dissatisfied according to the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) and/or Macnab criteria were then treated with PLDD. We analyzed outcomes from both treatment phases using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test and the Mann–Whitney U test. Results: 121 patients underwent outpatient evaluation for LDH and received an average of 90 days of conservative therapy. Of these 103 patients, dissatisfied with the outcomes of conservative treatment, subsequently underwent PLDD. Following conservative treatment, the average VAS score reduction was 4.1%. Six months after PLDD, the VAS scores demonstrated a significant reduction, with an average decrease of 30% (p < 0.0001). In terms of functional outcomes assessed by the Macnab criteria, 39.8% of patients treated with PLDD achieved ‘Excellent’ or ‘Good’ outcomes, compared to only 11.4% after conservative treatment. Conclusions: PLDD appears to be a viable alternative to conservative therapy for this subgroup of patients with contained LDH. It may be beneficial to propose PLDD early in the therapeutic regimen to accelerate short term clinical improvement. Further studies are required to evaluate the long term efficacy of this treatment approach. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Clinical Progress of Spine Surgery)
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