A Systematic Review of Current Terminology for Conditions Preceding Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy: Evidence Synthesis to Inform an AO Spine Expert Opinion Statement.

Publication/Presentation Date

9-1-2025

Abstract

Study DesignSystematic review.ObjectivesThe pre-symptomatic state of Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy (DCM), wherein degenerative changes and spinal cord compression are seen without clinical findings, is poorly understood and inconsistently categorised. Clear identification may elucidate the temporality of DCM development. Therefore, a systematic assessment was undertaken of current terminology for pre-DCM states, with the objective of standardising definitions and informing an AO Spine expert position statement.MethodsMedline and Embase were searched for all studies on asymptomatic spinal compression or clinical findings preceding DCM, returning 3585 studies. After screening, 96 studies were included in the final analysis. The terminology used for pre-DCM states and their definitions were extracted, along with their frequencies or speciality/country of author in the literature.ResultsMultiple terms were used to represent pre-DCM stages, including "

Volume

15

Issue

7

First Page

3506

Last Page

3516

ISSN

2192-5682

Disciplines

Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Health and Medical Administration | Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods

PubMedID

40304598

Department(s)

Administration and Leadership

Document Type

Article

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