Characteristics of the total group of patients and categorized by treatment arm: PV and OPM, before initiating therapy; P value for differences in PV versus OPM
| Total | PV | OPM | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of patients | 34 | 18 | 16 | |
| Age (years) | 73 (55–88) | 72 (59–84) | 74 (55–88) | .4 |
| Female sex (%) | 28 (82) | 14 (78) | 14 (88) | .5 |
| Duration of back pain | 81 (46–141) | 85 (47–138) | 76 (46–141) | .4 |
| Total number of pre-existing VCF | 108 | 59 | 48 | .5 |
| Mean (range) | 3.2 (1–8) | 3.3 (1–8) | 3.1 (1–8) | |
| Distribution of pre-existing VCF | T5–L5 | T5–L5 | T5–L5 | .5 |
| Total number of treated VCF | 49 | 28 | 21 | .04 |
| Mean (range) | 1.4 (1–3) | 1.6 (1–3) | 1.2 (1–2) | |
| Distribution of treated VCF | T6–L5 | T6–L5 | T6–L5 | .5 |
| Shape-treated VCF (%) | .02 | |||
| Wedge | 38 (78) | 25 (89) | 13 (62) | |
| Biconcave | 11 (22) | 3 (11) | 8 (38) | |
| Grade-treated VCF (%) | .1 | |||
| Mild | 6 (12) | 3 (11) | 3 (14) | |
| Moderate | 11 (22) | 6 (21) | 5 (24) | |
| Severe | 32 (65) | 19 (68) | 13 (62) | |
| Compression of treated VCF (%) | 45 (15–72) | 47 (23–72) | 42 (15–68) | .3 |
| Initial VAS for pain | 7.3 (5–10) | 7.1 (5–9) | 7.6 (5–10) | .3 |
| Initial pain medication (%) | .5 | |||
| None | 3 (9) | 2 (11) | 1 (6) | |
| Paracetamol | 11 (32) | 4 (22) | 7 (44) | |
| NSAIDs | 9 (27) | 6 (33) | 3 (19) | |
| Opiate derivative | 11 (32) | 6 (33) | 5 (31) | |
| QUALEFFO | 63 (37–86) | 60 (37–86) | 67 (38–86) | .1 |
| RMD | 16.7 (8–24) | 15.7 (8–22) | 17.8 (9–24) | .2 |
Note:—PV indicates percutaneous vertebroplasty; OPM, optimal pain medication; VCF, vertebral compression fracture; VAS, visual analog scale; NSAID, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug; QUALEFFO, Quality of Life Questionnaire of the European Foundation for Osteoporosis; RMD, Roland-Morris Disability questionnaire. Numbers are mean (range) or absolute number (percentage) if indicated by (%).