A study from the Spine Computational Outcomes Learning Institute (SCOLI) is featured on the cover of the October 2026 issue of the Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine. The cover art is Figure 1 of the paper, an illustration by Christopher M. Brown of the Lembert and vest-over-pants techniques for paraspinal muscle flap advancement.
The study compared 128 patients who had posterior cervical decompression and fusion closed with paraspinal muscle flap advancement against 380 patients who had conventional closure. Wound-related reoperation was less frequent after muscle flap closure (7% vs 12%), and on multivariable analysis muscle flap closure was associated with lower odds of infection and of wound-related reoperation.
Paraspinal muscle flap advancement to reduce wound complications following posterior cervical decompression and fusion
Adida, S., Wakelin, S.H., Shanahan, R.M., Reddy, P.D., Crall, V., Deng, H., Legarreta, A.D., Hudson, J.S., Hamilton, D.K., Agarwal, N.
J Neurosurg Spine 45:660-667, 2026. DOI: 10.3171/2026.2.SPINE251002
