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Cervical RadiculopathyFACADENCT03979443

Finnish Trial on Practices of Anterior Cervical Decompression (FACADE) Comparing Outpatient vs. Inpatient Care

A study testing Discharge on the day of surgery in people with Cervical Radiculopathy, run by Helsinki University Central Hospital at 1 site in Finland.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

FACADE is a prospective, randomized, controlled, parallel group non-inferiority trial comparing the traditional hospital surveillance (inpatient, patients staying in the hospital for 1-3 nights after surgery) to outpatient care (discharge on the day of the surgery, usually within 6-8 hours after procedure) in patients… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 62 years
Conditions the study is for
Cervical Radiculopathy
What is being tested?
Discharge on the day of surgery
Type of treatment
Surgery or procedure
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
104 participants
Where
1 siteFinland
Study dates
12 Jun 2019to 30 Oct 2021
Phase
Interventional
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 to 62 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult

Who may be able to join

  • Cervical radiculopathy syndrome (CRS) unresponsive to non-operative treatment for at least six weeks or with severe progressive signs and symptoms of nerve root compression during conservative treatment of shorter duration.
  • CRS is defined as pain, paresis or paresthesia in corresponding nerve root distribution areas of C5, C6, C7 or C8.
  • Nerve root stenosis determined by magnetic resonance imaging at treatment level correlating to CRS/symptoms
  • Neck Disability Index score ≥30 out of 100
  • Age between 18 to 62 years
  • No previous cervical operations
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  • Currently employed
  • No co-morbidities causing a need for a sick leave
  • Provision of informed consent from the participant
  • No contraindication for randomization in postoperative check (see below)

Who cannot join

  • MRI finding inconsistent with patient's symptoms
  • Diagnosed osteoporosis or permanent use of oral corticosteroids
  • ACDF operation requiring plate or cage fixation with screws
  • Active malignancy
  • American Society of Anesthesiologists Physical Status Classification system (ASA) 4 and 5 patients (seriously ill patients)
  • Pregnancy
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  • Abundant use of alcohol, drugs or narcotics
  • No possibility to be accompanied by an adult person over the first postoperative night after the surgery
  • Insufficient Finnish language skills
  • Distance to the closest hospital emergency more than 60 min

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Finland1 site
  • Helsinki University Hospital

    Helsinki

Other trials in Finland

About this study

Official title: Finnish Trial on Practices of Anterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion (FACADE): A Protocol for a Prospective Randomized Non-inferiority Trial Comparing Outpatient vs. Inpatient Care

FACADE is a prospective, randomized, controlled, parallel group non-inferiority trial comparing the traditional hospital surveillance (inpatient, patients staying in the hospital for 1-3 nights after surgery) to outpatient care (discharge on the day of the surgery, usually within 6-8 hours after procedure) in patients who have undergone anterior cervical decompression and fusion (ACDF) procedure.

Read the detailed description

To determine whether early discharge (outpatient care) is noninferior to inpatient care, the investigators will randomize 104 patients to these two groups and follow them for 6 months using the Neck Disability Index (NDI) as the primary outcome. The investigators expect that early discharge is not significantly worse (inferior) than the current care in terms of change in NDI. Noninferiority will be declared if the mean improvement for outpatient care is no worse than the mean improvement for inpatient care, within statistical variability, by a margin of 17.3%. The investigators hypothesize that a shorter hospital stay results in more rapid return to normal daily activities, shorter duration of sick leave and decreased secondary costs to health care system. Secondary outcomes in the study are arm pain and neck pain using the Numeric Rating Scale, operative success (Odom's criteria), patient's satisfaction to treatment, general quality of life (EQ-5D-5L), work ability score (WAS), sickness absence days, return to previous leisure activities, and complications.

Patients who are eligible for the trial, but are not willing to undergo randomization, will be asked to be included in a simultaneous, pragmatic follow-up cohort.

Being tested
Discharge on the day of surgery
Keywords
Anterior cervical decompression and fusion, cervical fusion, cervical spine, spinal surgery, outpatient care, randomized controlled trial, Protocol
Medical subject headings
Radiculopathy, Klippel-Feil Syndrome

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • Discharge on the day of surgeryProcedure or surgery

    Patient discharge on the day of the surgery, usually within 6-8 hours after procedure

Study groups in NCT03979443
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
InpatientNo interventionpatients staying in the hospital for 1-3 nights after surgery
OutpatientActive comparatordischarge on the day of the surgery, usually within 6-8 hours after procedure
Receives: Procedure: Discharge on the day of surgery

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Change from baseline Neck Disability Index at 6 months after operation

    Neck disability Index scale score ranges from 0 to 100%. Score 0 indicates no disability as score 100% indicates worst possible disability.

    Measured: Before and up to 6 months after operation

Secondary outcomes (5)
  1. Change from baseline Numeric rating scale on arm pain at six months after operation

    Numeric rating scale ranges from 0 to 10, where 0 indicates no pain and 10 indicates worst possible pain

    Measured: Before and up to 6 months after operation

  2. Change from baseline Numeric rating scale on neck pain at six months after operation

    Numeric rating scale ranges from 0 to 10, where 0 indicates no pain and 10 indicates worst possible pain

    Measured: Before and up to 6 months after operation

  3. Rate of returning to previous leisure activities after operation

    Before the operation, participants will be asked to name the most important daily leisure activity they are not able to perform because of the disease. At each follow-up time point (Table 2), participants will be asked to respond to the following question: "Have you been able to return to your leisure activity?" ("yes" or "no")

    Measured: Before and up to 6 months after operation

  4. Change from baseline Work Ability Score (WAS) at six months after operation

    Numeric rating score ranges from 0 to 10, where 0 indicates that participant is completely incapable to work and 10 indicates participants work ability at its best

    Measured: Before and up to 6 months after operation

  5. The duration of sick leave

    the number of sickness absence days from work both before and after the operation. The number of sickness absence days will be treated as a continuous variable

    Measured: Before and after operation

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted7 Jun 2019
  2. Study start12 Jun 2019
  3. Primary completion30 Oct 2021
  4. Study completion30 Oct 2021

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase N/A
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Double blind
Who is masked
Investigator, Outcomes assessor
Enrolment
104 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03979443
Sponsor's protocol ID
1540/2019
Acronym
FACADE
Status last verified
Mar 2023
First submitted
4 Jun 2019
Last updated
23 Mar 2023
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
Yes
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
Individual data sharing
Yes: Individual participant data (IPD) is available upon request when General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and guiding legislation regulations are fulfilled.

Publications

  • Lonnrot K, Taimela S, Satopaa J, Saarenpaa I, Leinonen V, Kivelev J, Silvasti-Lundell M, Forster J, Pitkanen M, Raj R, Kauppinen M, Westermarck R, Jahromi BR, Koski-Palken A, Seppala M, Kivipelto L, Antinheimo J, Korja M, Czuba T, Jarvinen TLN. Ambulatory Care vs Overnight Hospitalization After Anterior Surgery for Cervical Radiculopathy: The FACADE Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Netw Open. 2024 Nov 4;7(11):e2447459. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.47459.

    PubMed 39602120
  • Lonnrot K, Taimela S, Toivonen P, Aronen P, Koski-Palken A, Frantzen J, Leinonen V, Silvasti-Lundell M, Forster J, Jarvinen T; FACADE investigators. Finnish Trial on Practices of Anterior Cervical Decompression and Fusion (FACADE): a protocol for a prospective randomised non-inferiority trial comparing outpatient versus inpatient care. BMJ Open. 2019 Nov 26;9(11):e032575. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-032575.

    PubMed 31772100

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A study testing Discharge on the day of surgery in people with Cervical Radiculopathy, run by Helsinki University Central Hospital at 1 site in Finland.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 10 inclusion and 10 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 23 Mar 2023. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Finland. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Change from baseline Neck Disability Index at 6 months after operation (time frame: Before and up to 6 months after operation). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT03979443, which also lists 2 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 23 Mar 2023.

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