The financial outcome of traumatic brain injury: a single centre study.

OBJECTIVES: Severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) is a potentially devastating insult to the brain with high rates of fatality and neurological deficits. TBI can result in substantial costs to the centre providing care. We sought to present the experience of a Major Trauma Centre (MTC) and ascertain the financial implications of this healthcare provision, in particular detailed costs, reimbursement and the surplus or deficit accrued by the centre. DESIGN: All cranial non-elective neurosurgical admissions with a TBI over 4.5 months (26 October 2014 to 15 March 2015) were analysed retrospectively, excluding cases of chronic subdural haematoma, at an MTC in England. Demographic data were collected alongside detailed cost and income data. RESULTS: Ninety four patients were identified. The majority of patients presented with more than one diagnosis of cranial trauma. Average length of stay was 18.8 ± 21.6 days. Total deficits as a result of treating this cohort amounted to £558,034. There was a significant association between (i) more complex presentations and (ii) a longer length of stay and the deficit accrued by the centre. The major drivers of the financial outcome were costs associated with wards, medical staffing and overheads. CONCLUSION: There was a substantial deficit accrued as a result of the management of patients with TBI at an MTC. The more complex the presentation, extensive the intervention, and lengthy the stay, the greater the deficit accrued by the centre. The current tariff payment system is not effectively reflecting the severity of injury or intensity of management of patients with TBI.PJH is supported by a NIHR Research Professorship and the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Taylor & Francis via https://doi.org/10.1080/02688697.2016.124425

The utility of diagnostic selective nerve root blocks in the management of patients with lumbar radiculopathy: a systematic review.

OBJECTIVE: Lumbar radiculopathy (LR) often manifests as pain in the lower back radiating into one leg (sciatica). Unsuccessful back surgery is associated with significant healthcare costs and risks to patients. This review aims to examine the diagnostic accuracy of selective nerve root blocks (SNRBs) to identify patients most likely to benefit from lumbar decompression surgery. DESIGN: Systematic review of diagnostic test accuracy studies. ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA: Primary research articles using a patient population with low back pain and symptoms in the leg, SNRB administered under radiological guidance as index test, and any reported reference standard for the diagnosis of LR. INFORMATION SOURCES: MEDLINE (Ovid), MEDLINE In-Process & Other Non-Indexed Citations, EMBASE, Science Citation Index, Biosis, LILACS, Dissertation abstracts and National Technical Information Service from inception to 2018. METHODS: Risk of bias and applicability was assessed using the QUADAS-2 tool. We performed random-effects logistic regression to meta-analyse studies grouped by reference standard. RESULTS: 6 studies (341 patients) were included in this review. All studies were judged at high risk of bias. There was substantial heterogeneity across studies in sensitivity (range 57%-100%) and specificity (10%-86%) estimates. Four studies were diagnostic cohort studies that used either intraoperative findings during surgery (pooled sensitivity: 93.5% [95% CI 84.0 to 97.6]; specificity: 50.0% [16.8 to 83.2]) or 'outcome following surgery' as the reference standard (pooled sensitivity: 90.9% [83.1 to 95.3]; specificity 22.0% [7.4 to 49.9]). Two studies had a within-patient case-control study design, but results were not pooled because different types of control injections were used. CONCLUSIONS: We found limited evidence which was of low methodological quality indicating that the diagnostic accuracy of SNRB is uncertain and that specificity in particular may be low. SNRB is a safe test with a low risk of clinically significant complications, but it remains unclear whether the additional diagnostic information it provides justifies the cost of the test.National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment programme grant (project number 09/111/01)

Cord compression defined by MRI is the driving factor behind the decision to operate in Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy despite poor correlation with disease severity.

OBJECTIVES:The mainstay treatment for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy (DCM) is surgical decompression. Not all cases, however, are suitable for surgery. Recent international guidelines advise surgery for moderate to severe disease as well as progressive mild disease. The goal of this study was to examine the factors in current practice that drive the decision to operate in DCM. STUDY DESIGN:Retrospective cohort study. METHODS:1 year of cervical spine MRI scans (N = 1123) were reviewed to identify patients with DCM with sufficient clinical documentation (N = 39). Variables at surgical assessment were recorded: age, sex, clinical signs and symptoms of DCM, disease severity, and quantitative MRI measures of cord compression. Bivariate correlations were used to compare each variable with the decision to offer the patient an operation. Subsequent multivariable analysis incorporated all significant bivariate correlations. RESULTS:Of the 39 patients identified, 25 (64%) were offered an operation. The decision to operate was significantly associated with narrower non-pathological canal and cord diameters as well as cord compression ratio, explaining 50% of the variance. In a multivariable model, only cord compression ratio was significant (p = 0.017). Examination findings, symptoms, functional disability, disease severity, disease progression, and demographic factors were all non-significant. CONCLUSIONS:Cord compression emerged as the main factor in surgical decision-making prior to the publication of recent guidelines. Newly identified predictors of post-operative outcome were not significantly associated with decision to operate

A comparison of radiological descriptions of spinal cord compression with quantitative measures, and their role in non-specialist clinical management.

INTRODUCTION: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is gold-standard for investigating Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy (DCM), a disabling disease triggered by compression of the spinal cord following degenerative changes of adjacent structures. Quantifiable compression correlates poorly with disease and language describing compression in radiological reports is un-standardised. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. OBJECTIVES: 1) Identify terminology in radiological reporting of cord compression and elucidate relationships between language and quantitative measures 2) Evaluate language's ability to distinguish myelopathic from asymptomatic compression 3) Explore correlations between quantitative or qualitative features and symptom severity 4) Investigate the influence of quantitative and qualitative measures on surgical referrals. METHODS: From all cervical spine MRIs conducted during one year at a tertiary centre (N = 1123), 166 patients had reported cord compression. For each spinal level deemed compressed by radiologists (N = 218), four quantitative measurements were calculated: 'Maximum Canal Compromise (MCC); 'Maximum Spinal Cord Compression' (MSCC); 'Spinal Canal Occupation Ratio' (SCOR) and 'Compression Ratio' (CR). These were compared to associated radiological reporting terminology. RESULTS: 1) Terminology in radiological reports was varied. Objective measures of compromise correlated poorly with language. "Compressed" was used for more severe cord compromise as measured by MCC (p<0.001), MSCC (p<0.001), and CR (p = 0.002). 2) Greater compromise was seen in cords with a myelopathy diagnosis across MCC (p<0.001); MSCC (p = 0.002) and CR (p<0.001). "Compress" (p<0.001) and "Flatten" (p<0.001) were used more commonly for myelopathy-diagnosis levels. 3) Measurements of cord compromise (MCC: p = 0.304; MSCC: p = 0.217; SCOR: p = 0.503; CR: p = 0.256) and descriptive terms (p = 0.591) did not correlate with i-mJOA score. 4) The only variables affecting spinal surgery referral were increased MSCC (p = 0.001) and use of 'Compressed' (p = 0.045). CONCLUSIONS: Radiological reporting in DCM is variable and language is not fully predictive of the degree of quantitative cord compression. Additionally, terminology may influence surgical referrals.Welcome Trust NIH

A Novel Tool for the Assessment of Pain: Validation in Low Back Pain

Joachim Scholz and colleagues develop and validate an assessment tool that distinguishes between radicular and axial low back pain

Cord compression defined by MRI is the driving factor behind the decision to operate in Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy despite poor correlation with disease severity.

OBJECTIVES:The mainstay treatment for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy (DCM) is surgical decompression. Not all cases, however, are suitable for surgery. Recent international guidelines advise surgery for moderate to severe disease as well as progressive mild disease. The goal of this study was to examine the factors in current practice that drive the decision to operate in DCM. STUDY DESIGN:Retrospective cohort study. METHODS:1 year of cervical spine MRI scans (N = 1123) were reviewed to identify patients with DCM with sufficient clinical documentation (N = 39). Variables at surgical assessment were recorded: age, sex, clinical signs and symptoms of DCM, disease severity, and quantitative MRI measures of cord compression. Bivariate correlations were used to compare each variable with the decision to offer the patient an operation. Subsequent multivariable analysis incorporated all significant bivariate correlations. RESULTS:Of the 39 patients identified, 25 (64%) were offered an operation. The decision to operate was significantly associated with narrower non-pathological canal and cord diameters as well as cord compression ratio, explaining 50% of the variance. In a multivariable model, only cord compression ratio was significant (p = 0.017). Examination findings, symptoms, functional disability, disease severity, disease progression, and demographic factors were all non-significant. CONCLUSIONS:Cord compression emerged as the main factor in surgical decision-making prior to the publication of recent guidelines. Newly identified predictors of post-operative outcome were not significantly associated with decision to operate