Table 1.
Characteristic | Inclusion | Exclusion |
---|---|---|
Population | - Patients with cervical myelopathy secondary to spondylosis, disc herniation, ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament, congenital stenosis or subluxation. - Managed conservatively or surgically. - Age >18 years |
- Patient with traumatic spinal cord injury, thoracic or lumbar myelopathy, tumor or infection. |
Symptoms | - Numb hands Clumsy hands - Arm paresthesia - Neck pain - Shoulder or arm pain - Weakness - Gait disturbances - Bladder or bowel dysfunction |
- Clinical signs on physical examination - Patient reported outcome measures (eg neck disability index, SF-36, VAS, subjective questionnaires) - Clinician reported outcome measures (eg mJOA, Nurick, walking test, grip dynamometer, GRASSP, GaitRite) - Imaging characteristics |
Outcome | KQ1: Sensitivity, specificity, positive or negative predictive, positive or negative likelihood ratio KQ2: Frequency, percentages |
- Reliability - Responsiveness to change - Internal consistency |
Study design | KQ1: Case-control or cohort studies. Acceptable control group for comparison (eg individuals with cervical radiculopathy or axial neck pain with no myelopathic symptoms) KQ2: Clinical trial or cohort studies that reported the frequency of symptoms in the studied population |
- Commentaries or opinions - Systematic or narrative reviews - Animal or biomechanical studies - Studies with <15 patients - Studies without an acceptable control group |