Outcomes for Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy Following Implementation of the AO Spine International Guidelines: A Single-Centre Service Evaluation.

IntroductionDegenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is a syndrome of symptomatic cervical spinal cord compression due to degenerative spinal changes. Until recently there was no formal consensus on exactly which patients are suitable for surgical or conservative management. The AO Spine international guidelines were introduced to address this issue, based on the best available current evidence. However, their implementation into routine clinical practice has not yet been reported. The objective was to evaluate surgical outcomes following the implementation of the AO Spine guidelines at our spinal neurosurgical centre.MethodsA service evaluation was conducted using data collected from electronic healthcare records for 259 patients, with outcomes of interest including change in mJOA score and complications. Data from 193 patients were included in the final analysis.ResultsThere was a mean improvement of the mJOA score by 1.53 points, 1.44 point and 1.92 points at post-operative intervals of 3 months ( < .001), 6 months ( < .001) and 12 months ( < .001). The percentage (number) of patients whose increase in mJOA score was greater than or equal to the minimal clinically importance difference (MCID) was 41% (44/107), 34% (33/96) and 43% (49/114) at these respective time intervals. Intraoperative complications occurred in 28 patients (11.7%). No association was found between BMI and postoperative change in mJOA score.ConclusionOur results are comparable to those from best practice data and suggest adherence to international guidelines provides a service that promotes meaningful recovery for patients with DCM. Therefore, our results offer support for implementation of the AO Spine international guidelines in clinical practice.