Table 2.
Cohort studies in the field of IVDD.
| Published/peer reviewed/in-preprint cohort studies | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Summary | Outcome | Limitations | References |
| GWAS based studies | |||
| Investigate 5′ upstream SNP variant rs143383 in 5 population cohorts in Northern European women. | Positive association | IVDD struggles with a lack of established epidemiologic explanations, which makes it difficult to examine it methodically. | (145) |
| Investigate VNTR polymorphism in 132 middle aged Finnish men. | ACAN polymorphism has a correlation with IVDD. | Small sample size N = 132 |
(146) |
| GWAS to study chronic LBP. | Association of chronic LBP with genes expressed in the brain. Greater genetic contribution to chronic vs. acute pain. | No information on a detailed pain phenotype description or pain medication. | (147) |
| Linkage to CHST3 variants | CHST3 linkage with IVDD. | Small sample size N = 4,043 |
(148) |
| First GWAS meta-analysis of IVDD with 4,600 subjects | PARK2 gene is involved in IVDD. | Small sample size. N = 4,600 | (149) |
| GWAS related transcriptome analysis of Gasdermin-C | Association ofrs6651255 and rs7833174 with lumbar spinal stenosis. | Selection bias and small sample size. N = 400 |
(150) |
| Anatomical based studies | |||
| MRI of 200 IVDD patients on signs of degeneration with respect to age, sex, and other factors. | 21–30-year-old 38.8% showed at least one IVDD symptom. 51–60-year-old 91.6% showed at least one IVDD symptom. No substantial difference in disc height amongst all groups. | Patient medical histories were not obtained. Area of facet joint arthritis was not included. Quantification of spondylosis was not investigated. | (151) |
| Investigation of LSTV with LBP and IVDD | IVDD and LBP had a correlation with LSTV. | Small sample size N = 1,468 |
(152) |
| Baggage handlers from the Copenhagen Airport vs. control group | LBP was more prevalent in the baggage handlers. | Degree of exposure. Misclassification and misinterpretation of outcomes. | (153) |
| Investigates correlation between short and long-term physical inactivity and degeneration of the thoracic and lumbar spine. | Physical inactivity over a period of 14 years had a strong connection to IVDD. | No prior MRI images to compare with current MRI images. Lack of substantial information about physical activity. | (154) |
| Investigation if different thresholds of IVDD lead to a correlation between disc degeneration and self-reported LBP. | IVDD was most strongly associated with LBP at thresholds at more moderate grades at ages 45 and 49, despite a tendency for disc degeneration to be more strongly associated with LBP at thresholds at more severe grades of disc signal and disc height loss at age 41. | Odds ratio calculated by logistic regression analysis are associated with anomalies. | (155) |
| Fluoroscopic studies to compare intervertebral angular motion sharing inequality and variability during continuous lumbar motion in chronic, non-specific LBP patients and controls. | Higher inequality motion sharing was found in patients with chronic, non-specific LBP. | Small sample size. N = 20 |
(156) |
| A lumbar radiograph and a questionnaire were completed by 699 individuals. | No correlation between osteophytes and LBP Disc space narrowing is associated with neuropathic pain. | Inconsistent quality of radiographs. Anteroposterior lumbar radiograph was not available. | (157) |
| Correlation of symptomatic and asymptomatic age related IVDD. | Severe degeneration was seen in symptomatic patients in comparison to the asymptomatic patients. | The symptomatic group had patients only from 30 to 79 years of age. | (158) |
| Pain level based and other cohort studies | |||
| Investigates correlation between modic changes and LBP. | Significant and independent association between modic changes LBP. | Small sample size. N = 1,512 |
(159) |
| Investigates correlation between LBP, IVDD and mental distress. | Of the total population, 5.2% had severe and frequent LBP, and 29.0% had no LBP. Mental distress increased the correlation between LBP and IVDD. | Definition of clinically significant pain was relative. Details were not obtained on other comorbidities. | (160) |
| Investigatescorrelation between BMI, smoking and physical activity with IVDD in young adults. | Environmental factors play a role in IVDD in young males. | The smoking data was self-reported Imaging design was cross-sectional. | (161) |
ACAN, Aggrecan; BMI, body mass index; CNS, central nervous system; CHST3, carbohydrate sulfotransferase 3 variant; GWAS, genome wide association studies; IVDD, intervertebral disc degeneration; LBP, low back pain; LSTV, lumbosacral transitional vertebrae; MRI, magnetic resonance imaging; SNP, single nucleotide polymorphism; VNTR, variable number of tandem repeats.