The effects of anterior cervical decompression and fusion surgery on cervical spine kinematics and disability

Introduction and aim: The effects of Anterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion (ACDF) on cervical spine Range Of Motion (ROM) and disability haven't been studied in detail. This study aims to comparing active cervical movements kinematics in the frontal and horizontal planes between a group of patients with ACDF and healthy subjects. Furthermore the correlation with the Neck Disability Index (NDI) was investigated.

Methods and Materials: Data from 50 ACDF patients and 50 healthy subjects were acquired by the Flock of Birds electromagnetic tracking device. The movements on the main axis andthe coupled movements were analyzed by eleven parameters: the Cross-Correlation, the Ratio, the Range of Motion (ROM), the Jerk and Polynomial Smoothing of the three motion components. In addition the patients reported NDI after surgery. The data were compared with both parametric and non parametric statistics.

Results: A significant inverse correlation (p
Conclusion: The age had an inverse correlation with ROM on the main motion axis. The ACDF procedure affected the main motion component in both the axial rotation and lateral bending. It also had a negative effect on the quality of movements. No correlation among NDI score, age and cervical spine kinematics was demonstrated.