Bone Graft Material - BMP - How Does It Affect Spinal Fusion Outcomes?

Bone morphogenic protein (BMP) – that’s a mouthful to say – is a bone graft material that is used in about ¼ of all spinal fusions. Its use is growing rapidly (by almost 25% between the years of 2002 and 2006), but not all the questions have been answered. The purpose of BMP is to encourage bone to grow, so that the fusion of the adjacent vertebrae can take place.

A new report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association shows an association between the use of BMP and complications related to the surgery, although in the past, smaller studies have suggested fewer complications. The report also says that fusions with BMP end up costing more.

BMP was approved by the FDA in 2002 for lumbar spinal fusion surgery. To date, there have been no studies yielding national level data about how much or the way in which BMP is used, nor have there been national studies about complication rates. The JAMA study seems to be the first one to look for that information. The researcher reviewed the hospital records of 328,468 spinal fusion patients from the years 2002-2006. He found that neck fusions done with BMP had higher complication rates, and that the use of this material is growing especially rapidly in surgeries done on women. Medicare and non-white patients receive BMP surgeries less often than others.

| What is a Bone Graft? | About Spinal Fusion | Back Pain | Spinal Fusion for Chronic Low Back Pain? |

_Sources:

Benglis, D., et al. A comprehensive review of the safety profile of bone morphogenetic protein in spine surgery. Neurosurgery 62. 5(Supp 2) (2008), (accessed July 6, 2009).

American Medical Association Press Release. Agent Used in Spinal Surgery Linked to Higher Complications Rate, Greater Inpatient Charges. June 30, 2009.

Sandhu, HS. Bone morphogenetic proteins and spinal surgery. Spine 28. 5(Suppl) (2003). (accessed July 6, 2009).

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