Background:

Surgeons can preoperatively assess bone quality using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry or computed tomography; however, this is not feasible for all patients. Recently, a MRI-based scoring system was used to evaluate the lumbar spine’s vertebral bone quality.

Objective:

To create a similar MRI-based scoring system for the cervical spine (C-VBQ), correlate C-VBQ scores with computed tomography-Hounsfield units (HU), and evaluate the utility of this scoring system to independently predict cage subsidence after single-level anterior cervical diskectomy and fusion (ACDF).

Methods:

Demographic, procedure-related, and radiographic data were collected for patients. Pearson correlation test was used to determine the correlation between C-VBQ and HU. Cage subsidence was defined as ≥3 mm loss of fusion segmental height. A multivariate logistic regression model was built to determine the correlation between potential risk factors for subsidence.

Results:

Of 59 patients who underwent single-level ACDF, subsidence was found in 17 (28.8%). Mean C-VBQ scores were 2.22 ± 0.36 for no subsidence levels and 2.83 ± 0.38 (P < .001) for subsidence levels. On multivariate analysis, a higher C-VBQ score was significantly associated with subsidence (odds ratio = 1.85, 95% CI = 1.39-2.46, P < .001) and was the only significant independent predictor of subsidence after ACDF. There was a significant negative correlation between HU and C-VBQ (r2 = -0.49, P < .001).

Conclusion:

We found that a higher C-VBQ score was significantly associated with cage subsidence after ACDF. Furthermore, there was a significant negative correlation between C-VBQ and HU. The C-VBQ score may be a valuable tool for assessing preoperative bone quality and independently predicting cage subsidence after ACDF.