Receive surgery for neck spinal cord compression with a choice of two approaches

Back to Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy trials

Recruiting

What is this trial?

This trial compares two different surgical approaches for treating degenerative cervical myelopathy—a condition where the spinal cord in your neck becomes compressed, causing weakness, numbness, and balance problems. One approach uses muscle-preserving surgery to decompress the spinal cord without fusing the bones together, while the other adds metal hardware (fusion) to stabilize the spine after decompression. The trial wants to see which approach works better for patients like you.

Doctors know that surgery can help relieve the pressure on your spinal cord, but they're not sure whether adding fusion (metal hardware to lock bones in place) is necessary for all patients or whether decompression alone is sometimes enough. This trial will help answer that question so future patients get the most effective treatment with the fewest complications.

Do you qualify?

You likely qualify if…

you are at least 18 years old
you have been diagnosed with degenerative cervical myelopathy affecting 1 to 4 levels in your neck (C3-C7 vertebrae)
you have symptoms of myelopathy, such as weakness, numbness, or loss of bladder/bowel control
you have never had spine surgery before
you are able to read and speak Swedish fluently
you are able to attend follow-up visits and complete study procedures reliably

You likely don't qualify if…

you have severe kyphosis (abnormal forward curvature) of the cervical spine
you have spondylolisthesis (slipping of vertebrae) greater than 4 millimeters
you have a history of previous cervical spine surgery
you have active infection, cancer, inflammatory arthritis, Parkinson's disease, or dementia
you have significant lumbar or thoracic spinal disease that may require surgery within 6 months

What participation looks like

If you enroll, you will be randomly assigned to one of two groups: one receiving muscle-preserving decompression surgery alone, or the other receiving decompression surgery plus fusion with metal hardware. Both surgeries take place at the hospital, and you will have follow-up visits to assess your recovery, symptom improvement, and overall function. The study will track your progress over time to compare how well each approach works for relieving your symptoms and improving your quality of life.

Surgery with or without fusion for spinal cord compression in the neck

What is this trial?

Do you qualify?

What participation looks like

Trial locations(1 site)