Cervical disc replacement in athletes: a modified Delphi Consensus Survey of expert opinion
Consensus was achieved that CDR is an acceptable treatment for radiculopathy (74%) but not myelopathy (47%) in high impact/high frequency athletes; however, only 59% of surgeons would offer a CDR for athletes with radiculopathy. Reasons for CDR hesitancy were certainty of outcomes with ACDF, safety concerns, and lack of long-term data. Although consensus was reached for some indications herein, this study highlights the ongoing heterogeneity in the use of CDR for contact sport athletes and concerns regarding its safety. Future research should focus on gathering primary data on safety, durability, and long-term efficacy of CDR among athletes of different sports.
Authors
- Robert G. Watkins (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2785-1449)
- Susan Liew (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9805-0695)
- Steven C. Ludwig (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3962-5724)
- Andrew M. Cordover (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7422-2891)
- David O. Okonkwo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7444-2851)
- Ronald A. Lehman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5799-9885)
- Robert C. Cantu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-4300-4063)
- Hank Feuer
- Scott L. Zuckerman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2951-2942)
- Vincent Mièle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7584-0088)
- Frank M. Phillips
- Gavin A Davis (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8293-4496)
- Venu M. Nemani (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8895-7090)
- Jacob Joseph (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8698-3412)
- Raymond Joseph Gardocki (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4230-4411)
- Nicholas Theodore (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5355-2683)
- Allan D. Levi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0713-8497)
- Jacob Jo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0424-3507)
- Gabriel A. Smith (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8400-0176)
- Domagoj Coric (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8521-2691)
- K. Daniel Riew (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2083-9375)
- Sheeraz A. Qureshi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7177-1756)
- Philip K. Louie (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4787-1538)
- Andrew C. Hecht (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5228-4568)
- Christopher M. Bonfield (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9338-7579)
- Philip V Chan
- Wellington K. Hsu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9086-6868)
- Grant H. Rigney
- Jeffrey P. Mullin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0640-2329)
- Jay D. Turner
- Rick C. Sasso
- Alexander R. Vaccaro
- Joseph C. Maroon
- Allen K. Sills (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1145-0480)
- Julian E. Bailes
- Myron A. Rogers
Institutions
- Northwestern University (US)
- University of Maryland, Baltimore (US)
- Hospital for Special Surgery (US)
- Rush University Medical Center (US)
- American Sports Medicine Institute (US)
- University of Maryland Medical Center (US)
- Virginia Mason Medical Center (US)
- Mount Sinai Health System (US)
- Barrow Neurological Institute (US)
- NorthShore University HealthSystem (US)
- NewYork–Presbyterian Hospital (US)
- Harvard University (US)
- University of Miami (US)
- Cornell University (US)
- University of Michigan (US)
- University Hospitals of Cleveland (US)
- Franciscan Health (US)
- Austin Hospital (AU)
- Emerson Hospital (US)
- Marina Del Rey Hospital (US)
- The Alfred Hospital (AU)
- University of Chicago (US)
- Cabrini Hospital (AU)
- Monash Alfred Psychiatry Research centre (AU)
- Atrium Medical Cente (US)
- Center for Neurosciences (US)
- University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (US)
- Rothman Institute (US)
- Johns Hopkins Hospital (US)
- University School (US)
- Neurological Surgery (US)
- Alfred Health (AU)
- Austin Health (AU)
- Indiana University School of Medicine
- Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis (US)
- Monash University (AU)
- Case Western Reserve University (US)
- University at Buffalo, State University of New York (US)
- Columbia University (US)
- Vanderbilt University Medical Center (US)
Publication Details
- Journal
- The Spine Journal
- Published
- 2025-05-06
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spinee.2025.05.009
- Primary Topic
- Cervical and Thoracic Myelopathy
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00