Non-Tobacco Nicotine Is Associated With Increased Complications Following Posterior Cervical Fusion: A Retrospective Cohort Study.
Publication/Presentation Date
6-17-2026
Abstract
Study DesignRetrospective cohort study.ObjectivesTo examine the impact of non-tobacco nicotine (NTN) dependence on pseudarthrosis and postoperative complications following posterior cervical fusion (PCF).MethodsThe TriNetX national database was queried for adult patients (18-80 years) who underwent a primary posterior cervical fusion (2012-2025). Patients were stratified into 3 cohorts: non-tobacco nicotine-dependent (NTND) patients, tobacco-dependent (TD) patients, and non-dependent controls. Patients underwent propensity-score matching, and pairwise comparisons (NTND vs control, TD vs control, NTND vs TD) were performed. The primary outcome was pseudarthrosis development, and secondary outcomes included medical/surgical complications.ResultsA total of 7102 patients were included. At 3 years, NTND patients had higher rates of pseudarthrosis (2.51% vs 1.84%,
First Page
21925682261454228
Last Page
21925682261454228
ISSN
2192-5682
Published In/Presented At
Giakas, A. M., Green, W. A., Castro, A., Tecce, E., Ng, M. K., Milano, M., Lee, Y., Baek, G., Dalton, J., Thomas, G., Olson, J., Mathew, J., Eichbaum, Y., Hitchner, M., Cha, T. D., Hilibrand, A., Vaccaro, A. R., Kepler, C., & Schroeder, G. (2026). Non-Tobacco Nicotine Is Associated With Increased Complications Following Posterior Cervical Fusion: A Retrospective Cohort Study. Global spine journal, 21925682261454228. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/21925682261454228
Disciplines
Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Health and Medical Administration | Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods
PubMedID
42307967
Department(s)
Administration and Leadership
Document Type
Article