Spine surgeons test whether sparing key back tissues improves infection surgery
NCT ID NCT07817927
First seen Sep 14, 2026 · Last updated Sep 15, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers compare two back-only surgical approaches for thoracic pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis, a bacterial infection that destroys spinal bone. One approach, PTDIF, reaches the infected area through a corridor that preserves the posterior ligamentous complex and nearby joints. The other, PLDIF, removes those structures along with a rib and part of a joint. The trial measures operative time, blood loss, pain, disability, infection markers, and complications in 89 patients.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Posterior transforaminal debridement and interbody fusion, a spine surgery that removes infected bone and rebuilds the spine through a back-only approach
- What this could lead to
- If the tissue-sparing approach works as well as the standard operation, it could offer patients less blood loss, shorter surgery, and a faster recovery.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small trial at a single group of hospitals, so results may not apply everywhere. Both operations carry risks of infection, nerve injury, and hardware problems.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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89 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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May 2021
- Finished
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Aug 2023
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Failure of conservative treatment for thoracic pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis * Intractable back pain * Significant vertebral destruction leading to spinal instability and/or deformity * Neurological deterioration * Evident abscess formation * Diagnosis confirmed by histopathological examination, bacterial culture, and metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) Exclusion Criteria: * Patients without definitive microbiological or histopathological confirmation of PVO * Spinal tuberculosis (excluded via T-SPOT.TB assay and other diagnostic workup)
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As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Changde First People's Hospital
Changde, Hunan, 410008, China
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Changsha Central Hospital
Changsha, Hunan, 410008, China
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Xiangya Boai Rehabilitation Hospital
Changsha, Hunan, 410008, China
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Xiangya Hospital of Central South University
Changsha, Hunan, 410008, China