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Review
. 2021 Jun;163(6):1561-1568.
doi: 10.1007/s00701-021-04767-6. Epub 2021 Feb 24.

Research activity amongst DCM research priorities

Ben Grodzinski  1 , Harry Bestwick  1 , Faheem Bhatti  1 , Rory Durham  1 , Maaz Khan  1 , Celine Iswarya Partha Sarathi  1 , Jye Quan Teh  1 , Oliver Mowforth  2 , Benjamin Davies  3
Affiliations
Review

Research activity amongst DCM research priorities

Ben Grodzinski et al. Acta Neurochir (Wien). 2021 Jun.

Abstract

Introduction: Degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder. DCM is common (estimated prevalence, 2% of adults) and significantly impacts quality of life. The AO Spine RECODE-DCM (Research Objectives and Common Data Elements in DCM) project has recently established the top research priorities for DCM. This article examines the extent to which existing research activity aligns with the established research priorities.

Methods: A systematic review of MEDLINE and Embase for "Cervical" AND "Myelopathy" was conducted following PRISMA guidelines. Full-text papers in English, exclusively studying DCM, published between January 1, 1995 and August 08, 2020 were considered eligible. Extracted data for each study included authors, journal, year of publication, location, sample size and study design. Each study was then analysed for alignment to the established research priorities.

Results: In total, 2261 papers with a total of 1,323,979 patients were included. Japan published more papers (625) than any other country. Moreover, 2005 (89%) of 2261 papers were aligned to at least one research priority. The alignment of papers to the different research priorities was unequal, with 1060 papers on the most researched priority alone (#15, predictors of outcome after treatment), but only 64 total papers on the least-researched 10 priorities. The comparative growth of research in the different priorities was also unequal, with some priorities growing and others plateauing over the past 5 years.

Discussion: Research activity in DCM continues to grow, and the focus of this research remains on surgery. The established research priorities therefore represent a new direction for the field.

Keywords: Cervical; Degeneration; Degenerative; Myelopathy; Spondylosis; Spondylotic.

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Conflict of interest statement

Author BMD is supported by a NIHR Clinical Doctoral Research Fellowship.

All other authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organisation or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership or other equity interests; and expert testimony or patent-licencing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Global distribution of DCM research activity. Country colour indicates number of papers published in that country, as per the legend. The country attributed is that of the lead author
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Median paper sample size by priority. Note the logarithmic scale on the vertical axis. Error bars indicate 95% confidence intervals
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Cumulative number of papers by priority. Cumulative counts for each priority are shown in different colours. Note that the data for 2020 is up until February 12, and hence, the expected end-of-year counts will likely be higher
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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