META-ANALYSIS STUDY OF BRYAN CERVICAL ARTHROPLASTY VERSUS ANTERIOR CERVICAL DISCECTOMY AND FUSION IN TREATMENT OF CERVICAL DEGENERATIVE DISC DISEASE

Abstract

Spine arthroplasty is a growing subspecialist area of spinal surgery. There are great opportunities for new materials, devices, and technology to emerge.

Total disc replacement in the cervical spine offers the opportunity to preserve functional motion and maintain balance. It is postulated that arthroplasty may reduce adjacent level disease more than traditional surgical treatment methods.

The other advantages to this surgical option are immediate implant stability, no complications due to nonunion, and no need for graft harvesting.

There is general agreement among spine surgeons to consider TDR as an efficient and reliable treatment for cervical degenerative disc disease based on clinical outcomes and patient benefits.

Furthermore, this alternative to ACDF is considered by many as a potentiality to give better chances to the patient regarding adjacent disc preservation mostly due to the motion preservation not only at the index level but also at adjacent levels.

Additionally, accumulating data suggests that TDR is associated with a lower complication rate than ACDF.

Regarding the different devices currently available, authors generally publish encouraging results, in terms of clinical outcomes, rate of complications, and preservation of motion at the index level.