Reduced Forearm Bone Mineral Density Predicts Cage Subsidence After Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion in Cervical Spondylosis.

BACKGROUND

Cage subsidence is a common postoperative complication following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion (ACDF). Although vertebral bone density is a known risk factor, the relationship between forearm bone mineral density (BMD) and cage subsidence remains unclear. This study investigates whether forearm BMD can effectively predict cage subsidence after ACDF.

METHODS

We retrospectively evaluated 197 patients who underwent ACDF between September 2019 and January 2023. Patients were stratified into nonsubsidence and subsidence groups based on postoperative cage subsidence. Collected data included age, gender, body mass index, smoking history, diabetes history, disease type, operative segment, Hounsfield unit (HU) values of surgical-level vertebrae, forearm BMD, and restored height of fused segments. Univariate analysis identified potential risk factors, followed by logistic regression to determine independent predictors. Receiver operating characteristic curves and area under the curve assessed the predictive value of forearm BMD.

RESULTS

Cage subsidence occurred in 66/197 patients (33.5%). Significant differences between groups were observed in restored vertebral height, forearm BMD, and HU values (all ∗p∗ < 0.05). Multivariate analysis identified forearm BMD (odds ratio 0.949; 95% confidence interval 0.867-0.964; ∗p∗ = 0.022) and HU values (odds ratio 0.956; 95% confidence interval 0.889-0.976; ∗p∗ = 0.031) as independent risk factors. The area under the curve for predicting subsidence was 0.864 (BMD) and 0.879 (HU values), with optimal thresholds of 0.382 g/cm2 (sensitivity 76.9%, specificity 81.0%) and 298.5 HU (sensitivity 96.2%, specificity 69.0%).

CONCLUSIONS

Forearm BMD is an independent risk factor for cage subsidence after ACDF and serves as an effective predictive indicator. HU values of surgical-level vertebrae also reliably predict subsidence.