For the two best papers and two best posters on the program each year, as decided by the Program Committee. See awards from 2014 and onwards here

Medtronic Best Paper and Poster Awards 2013

BEST PAPERS
30. Male spine motion during coitus: Implications for the low back pain patient
Sidorkewicz N, Cambridge EDJ, McGill SM; Waterloo, Canada

64. Psychosocial stress is associated with onset of low back pain with disability in college students: a longitudinal study before and after the disaster in Fukushima
Kato K, Sekiguchi M, Nikaido T, Otoshi K, Matsuo Y, Kikuchi S, Konno S; Fukushima, Japan

BEST POSTERS
SP14 How far into a degenerated annulus can blood vessels and nerves penetrate?
Lama P, Stefanakis M, Sychev I, Summers B, Harding IJ, Dolan P, Adams MA; Bristol UK

SP44 Outcomes following transforaminal endoscopic surgery – two year RCT results
Arthur C and JNA Gibson; Edinburgh, Scotland

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2012

BEST PAPERS

O152 Glucosamine supplementation has a negative effect on intervertebral disc matrix
Jacobs LJ, Coehlo P, Dong Q, Bechara B, Hempen E, Vo N, Kang JD, Balk J, Pruess H, Sowa G

O233 Micromechanics of Annulus-Endplate Integration
Rodrigues SA, Wade K, Robertson P, Thambyah A, Broom ND

BEST POSTERS

SP16 Body-mass index modulates association of physical activity with low back pain
Smuck M, Kao MCJ, Huang SW, Tomkins-Lane CC

SP24 Does the harvesting of posterior iliac crest autograft contribute to short or long term functional impairment in patients
Montgomery AS, Cunningham JE, Robertson PA

Medtronic Paper and Poster Awards 2011

BEST PAPERS

8. Formation of lamellar cross bridges in the annulus fibrosus of the intervertebral disc is a consequence of vascular regression
Smith, L, Elliott, D; Philadelphia, United States

20. Lumbar disc changes on MRI and low back pain. A prospective long-term study in healthy volunteers from childhood to maturity Lund, T, Klemetti, E, Lohman, M, Kettunen, J, Osterman, K, Schlenzka, D: Helsinki, Finland

BEST POSTERS

SP15. High osmolality reduces the proliferation rate of nucleus pulposus intervertebral disc cells, negatively regulates their response to exogenous growth factors and activates an enhanced DNA repair mechanism
Mavrogonatou, E, Kletsas, D: Athens, Greece

SP18. The polyphenol resveratrol shows promising potential for the treatment of nucleus pulposus mediated pain in vitro and vivo Wuertz, K, Quero, L, Sekiguchi, M, Klawitter, M, Nerlich, A, Konno, S, Kikuchi, S, Boos, N: Zurich, Switzerland; Fukushima, Japan, Munich, Germany

Paper and Poster Awards 2010

BEST PAPERS

50. Bony healing of the pediatric lumbar spondylolysis with conservative treatment: Which type of lysis and how long?
K Sairyo, T Sakai, N Yasui, Tokushima, Japan

35. Polymorphisms in genes encoding extracellular matrix proteins are associated with susceptibility to lumbar disc herniation
K Chiba, F Mio, Y Hirose, Y Kawaguchi, Y Mikami, T Kimura, T Kubo, Y Toyama, S Ikegawa, Tokyo, Japan

BEST POSTERS

SP36. Oxygen metabolism of intervertebral disc cells; comparison between cells from the bovine outer annulus and nucleus pulposus
OA Boubriak, S Zhou, JPG Urban, Oxford, UK

SP17. Notochordal cells influence gene expression of inflammatory mediators of annulus fibrosus cells in proinflammatory cytokines stimulation.
J-H Kim, HJ Moon, JJ Park, JD Kang, YK Park, Seoul, South Korea

You can read the abstracts in the abstract book >>

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2009

BEST PAPER

A fibre-level elucidation of the disc’s translamellar bridges
M Schollum, P Robertson, N Broom, Auckland, New Zealand

Motion and load determines the pattern of annulus disruption
S McGill, C Tampier, J Yates. L Marshall, Waterloo, ON, Canada

BEST POSTER

Identification of cell proliferation zones, progenitor cells and a potential stem cell niche in the intervertebral disc region. A study in four species.
H Barreto Henriksson, M Thornemo, C Karlsson. O Hagg, R Junevik, A Lindhal, H Brisby, Goteborg, Sweden

Notochordal nucleus pulposus cells: Does mechanical loading affect their disappearance.
T Guehring, A Nerlich, M Kroeber, W Richter, G Omlor, Heidelberg, Munich-Bogenhausen, Germany, St. Gallen, Switzerland

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2008

PAPER AWARDS

Novel microanatomical findings which explain the pathogenesis and clinical features of intraspinal synovial cysts.
W Wilby, R Fraser, B Vernon-Roberts, R Moore, Adelaide, Australia

Notochordal cells in interverbral disc: Characterization and differentiation.
JH Kim, B Deasy, HY Seo, R Studer, NV Vo, H Georgescu, G Sowa, J Kang, Pittsburgh, PA, USA

SPECIAL POSTER AWARDS

Bone marrow mesemchymal stem cells have distinct phenotypic characteristics compared to intervertebral disc cells and may be differentiated towards intervertebral disc cells via co-culture.
J Hsu, B Shen, H Tao, A Diwan, D Ma, Sydney, Australia

Changes in the mechanical properties of the trunk during remission from low back pain may be associated with recurrence.
P Hodges, W van den Hoorn, A Dawson, J Cholewicki, Brisbane, Australia, Lansing, MI, USA

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2007

PAPER AWARDS

Surgical versus non-operative treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis: Two year results of the spine patient outcomes research trial
1JN Weinstein, 1JD Lurie, 1TD Tosteson, 1E Blood, 1ANA Tosteson, 2T Albert, 3FP Cammisa, 4H Herkowitz 1Dartmouth Medical School, Lebanon, NH; 2 Rothman Institute of Thomas Jefferson University, Philadelphia, PA; 3 Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY; 4 William Beaumont Hospital, Royal Oak, MI

Acknowledgement: The authors would like to acknowledge funding from the following sources: The National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (U01-AR45444-01A1) and the Office of Research on Women’s Health, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The Multidisciplinary Clinical Research Center in Musculoskeletal Diseases is funded by NIAMS (P60-AR048094-01A1). Dr. Lurie is supported by a Research Career Award from NIAMS (1 K23 AR 048138-01).

Surgery versus prolonged conservative treatment for sciatica
Wilco C, Peul, Hans C van Houwelingen, PhD, Wilbert B van den Hout, PhD, Ronald Brand, PhD.3. Just A.H. Eekhof, M.D., PhD, Joseph Th J Tans, M.D., PhD, Ralph T.W.M. Thomeer M.D., PhD, Bart W. Koes, PhD, for the Leiden-The Hague Spine-Intervention-Study Group

SPECIAL POSTER AWARDS

Linkage Analysis On Familial Early-Onset Degenerative Disc Disease
Daniel W.H. Ho 1, Kenneth M.C. Cheung 2, Danny Chan1, Jaro Karppinen4, SP Yip 5, Jurg Ott6, Keith D.K. Luk 2, John C.Y. Leong 2, Kathryn S.E. Cheah 1, Pak Sham 7 and You-Qiang Song 1, 2, 3
1 Department of Biochemistry, 2 Department of Orthopaedics & Traumatology and, 3 The Genome Research Centre, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. 4 Department of Rehabilitation, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland. 5 Department of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong. 6 Laboratory of Statistical Genetics, Rockefeller University, New York, USA. 7 Kings College, London, UK

TNF Alpha In Nucleus Pulposus Mediates Pain, But Not Inflammation, Associated With Nerve Damage In Mice
Masaomi Yamashita, Seiji Ohtori, Tomoko Watanabe, Gen Inoue, Takana Koshi, Kazuyo Yamauchi, Toshinori Ito, Munetaka Suzuki, Hideshige Moriya, Kazuhisa Takahashi, Chiba, Japan

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2006

PAPER AWARDS

Surgical versus non-operative treatment for lumbar disc herniation: RCT and observational cohort outcomes from SPORT ( Spine patient outcomes research trial)
J Weinstein, J Lurie, T Tosteson, B Hanscom, A Tosteson, J Skinner, W Abdu, T Albert, S Boden, F Cammisa, J Fischgrund, H Herkowitz, A Hilibrand, R Deyo, Philadelphia, PA, Atlanta, GA, New York, NY, Royal Oak, MI, Seattle, WA, USA

Diffusion of human lumbar intravertebral discs can be enhanced pharmacologically with oral nimodipine
S Rajasekaran, N Babu, K Murugan, A Shetty, Coimbatore, India

POSTER AWARDS

Bone morphogenic protein rescues human intervertebral disc cells in-vitro from apoptosis
A Wei, S Chung, H Brisby, A Diwan, Sydney, Australia

Genome-wide linkage analysis for lumbar disc disease characterized by sciatica
I Virtanen, N Noponen-Hietala, S Barral, J Karppinen, H Li, M Vuoristo, J Niinimaki, J Ott, L Ala-Kokko, M Mannikko, Oulu and Helsinki, Finland, New York, NY, USA

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2005

PAPER AWARDS

A prospective assessment of patient expectations and satisfaction in lumbar decompression surgery: An alternative method to measure MCID in treatment cohorts.
Carragee E, Alamin R, Stanford, CA, USA

Apoptosis in intervertebral disc cells is dependent on their biology
Ryvar R, Williams G, Eisenstein S, Roberts S, Ostwesry, UK

POSTER AWARDS

An abnormal shear force application on the lumbar vertebrae caused disc degeneration and pain behaviour in rat
T-H Lim, J Kim, S-J Yang, J-B Park, J Stevens, G Kurriger, S Mendoza, Iowa City, IA, USA

Diagnosis of lumbar lateral disc herniation: Value of magnetic resonance imaging revisited
S-K Park, JS Yeom, C-K Lee, B-S Chang, J-Hak Lee, J-Hyup Lee, S-H Kim Bundang-ku, Sungnam, Korea

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2004

PAPER AWARDS

The MRC spine stabilization trial: A randomized controlled trial to compare surgical stabilization of the lumbar spine versus an intensive rehabilitation programme on outcome in patients with chronic low back pain
Fairbank J, Frost H, Wilson-MacDonald J, Yu LM, Barker K, Collins R
Oxford , UK

Evaluation of spinal metastases in a preclinical rat model of human breast carcinoma
Burch S, Bisland S, Bogaards A, Whyne, C Wilson B, Finkelstein J, Yee A
Toronto, Canada

POSTER AWARDS

Biomechanical basis for using signal changes of pedicle on MRI as an indicator for early diagnosis of spondylolysis
Sairyo K, Vadapalli S, Goel V, Takata Y, Masuda A, Biyani A, Ebraheim N, Katoh S, Yasui N
Toledo,OH, USA and Tokushima, Japan

Contribution of non spinal medical pathologies to the low back pain outcomes
McIntosh G, Hall H, Boyle C
Toronto, Canada

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2003

PAPER AWARDS

Association of lumbar disc degeneration with type 1X collagen polymorphism in Chinese
K Cheung, J Jim, N Nonopone, K Cheah, L. Ala-Kokko. J Ott, J Karppinen, J Song, S Yip, L Leong, K Luk, D Chan
Hong Kong, New Orleans, LA, New York, NY, USA, Oulu, Finland

Pathogenes of neurogenic intermittent claudication Ð relationship between venous congestion and ecotopic firing
M Ikawa, Y Atsutsa, H Tsunekawa
Hokkaido, Japan

POSTER AWARDS

Functional impairment and the prediction of spine loading
W Marras, S Ferguson, D Burr, P Gupta
Columbus, OH, USA

A prospective controlled study of limited versus subtotal posterior discectomy: Short term outcomes in patients with herniated intervertebral discs and large posterior annular defects
E Carragee, T Alamin, S Paragioudakis
Stanford, CA, USA

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2002

PAPER AWARDS

Clinical: Treatment of sciatica with infliximab, a monocloncal humanised climaeric antibody against TNF
T Korhonen, J Karppinen, A Malmivaara, L Paimela, E Kyllonen, K-A Lindgren, P Rantanen, J Niinimaki, O Tervonen, S Seitsalo, H Hurri
Helsinki, Oulu, Finaland

Basic Science: The biomechanical basis of buckling collapse in childhood spinal tuberculosis
S Ragasekaran
Coimbatore, India

POSTER AWARDS

Clinical: Pre-existing physical and psychosocial conditions: Are those who file back injury claims different from other injury claimants?
M Battie, L Gibbons, S Bigos, W Fordyce, L Fisher
Edmonton, Canada, Seattle, USA

Basic Science: Prediction of spinal deformity following disc degeneration and osteoporosis
T Keller, DE Harrison, C Colloca, DD Harrison, T Janik
Burlington, USA

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2001

PAPER AWARDS

Clinical: Chronic low back pain and fusion Ð A comparison of three surgical techniques.
A report from the Swedish Spine Study Group
P Fritzell, O Hagg, P Wessberg. A Nordwall and the Swedish Lumbar Spine Group, Falum and Goteborg, Sweden

Basic Science: An in vivo approach to characterizing local biomechanics in a radiculopathy model
B Winkelstein, M Rutkowski, J Weinstein, J DeLeo
Lebanon, NH, USA

POSTER AWARDS

Effects of IDET on human lumbar discs. Biomechanics and histology
F Kleinstueck, C Diederich, W Nau, C Puttlitz, J Smith, D Bradford, J Lotz
San Francisco, CA, USA

Basic Science: Mechanism of sciatica experienced in lumbar disc herniation: Change in intraradicular blood flow by intraoperative SLR test
S Kobayashi, H Yoshizawa, S Nakai, N Shizu, Y Suzuki, T Asai
Toyoake City, Japan

Best Paper and Poster Awards 2000

PAPER AWARDS

Clinical: Potential LBP mechanisms of psychosocial job stress
WS Marras, KG Davis, CA Heaney, AB Maronitis
Columbus, OH, USA

Basic Science: Immune-privilege of the intervertebral disc: Long-term transgene expression following direct adenovirus-mediated gene transfer
K Nishida, LG Gilbertson, SH Moon, PD Robbins, CH Evans, JD Kang
Pittsburgh, PA, USA

POSTER AWARDS

Clinical: Peripheral nerve noxious stimulation by the nucleus pulposus: Expression of c-fos in the lumbar spine cord using immunohistochemistry
T Kado, T Hasegawa, T Chujo, Y Mikawa, Kurashiki
Okayama, Japan

Basic Science: Increases of proteoglycan content and disc heights in rabbit intervertebral disc by in vivo administration of osteogenic protein-1
K Takegami, K Masuda, H An, H Kamada, C Nguyen, TH Lim, E Thonar
Chicago, IL, USA

Best Paper and Poster Awards 1999

PAPER AWARDS

Basic Science Paper
Resorable porous ceramics in spinal arthrodesis
T. Steffen, H. Baramki, F. Marchesi, P. Lander, D. Marchesi
Montreal, Canada

Clinical Paper
Can exercise therapy improve the outcome of microdiscectomy?
P. Dolan, K. Greenfield, R. Nelson, C. Bolger, I. Nelson
Bristol, UK

Honourable Mention
Gene therapy for spinal fusion: Transformation of marrow cells with adenoviral vector to produce bone morphogenetic protein
J. Wang, S. Yoo, L. Kanim, P. McAllister, S. Nelson, J. Lieberman
Los Angeles, USA

POSTER AWARDS

Best Poster Award
Static, viscoelastic and fatigue biomechanical properties of sheep artificial intervertebral disc and their alterations in vivo
K. Kadoya, Y. Kotani, K. Kaneda, K. Abumi, T. Takada, N. Shimamoto, H. Isayama, Y. Shikinami, T. Kadosawa
Sapporo, Japan

Best Poster Award
Low back pain recollection versus concurrent accounts: An outcomes analysis
E. Dawson, L. Kanim, P. Sra, R. Delamarter, H. Sandhu
Los Angeles, USA

Best Poster Award
Instrumented posterolateral lumbar and lumbosacral fusion – An outcome study
P. Robertson, S. Jackson
Auckland, New Zealand

Honourable Mention
The back pain board game: A new educational tool
M. Romano, S. Negrini, P. Sibilla
Milan, Italy

Honourable Mention
Low back pain recollection versus concurrent accounts: An outcomes analysis
G. Kawchuk, O. Fauvel, J. Dmowski
Calgary, Canada

Best Paper and Poster Awards 1998

PAPER AWARDS

Prediction of low back pain in individuals with asymptomatic disc alterations in MRI
V. Schade, N. Semmer, C. Main and N. Boos
Zurich and Salford, UK

In vivo porcine intervertebral pressure as a function of external loading
L. Ekstrom, S. Holm, A. Kaigle, T. Hansson
Goteborg

POSTER AWARDS

New intradiscal pressure measurements in vivo during daily activities
H.J. Wilke, P. Neef, M. Caimi Th. Hoogland, L. Claes
Ulm and Munchen, Germany, Basel, Switzerland

Pro-prostaglandin E1 alleviates neuronal dysfunction induced by experimental lumbar spinal canal stenosis in rats
T. Akira, T. Kawamura, T. Maruyama, T. Imagawa, N. Nakamura, H. Takai, T. Ikata
Osaka and Tokushima, Japan

Surgical and non-surgical outcomes in chemically sensitized discs diagnosed by discography (shared)
R. Derby, M. Howard, J. Grant, J. Lettice
California, USA

A 7 year follow up study of the value of lumbar spine MR to predict the development of low back pain in asymptomatic individuals (shared)
D. Borenstein, J. O’Mara, S. Boden, W. Lauerman, A. Jacobson, C. Platenberg, D. Schelenger, S. Wiesel
Washington DC. and Atlanta, GA

Best Paper and Poster Awards 1997

PAPER AWARDS

Tuberculous lesions of the lumbosacral region. Long term follow up of 15 years.
S. Rajasekaran, T.K. Shanmugasundaran, R. Prabhakar, J. Dheenadhayalan, S.P. Shetty
Madras, India

Vertebral body deformations contrasted under compression and shear loading.
H.P. Frei, T.R. Oxland, M. Slomczykowski, L.P. Nolte
Bern, Switzerland

POSTER AWARDS

Hydrostatic loads within an intervertebral fusion cage: An in vitro model.
A.J. Ghanayem, S.M. Bourn, R. Havey, A. Patwardhan
Maywood, IL, USA

MR vertebral end plate changes and back pain.
I.W. McCall, V.N. Cassar-Pullicino, P.N.M. Tyrrell
Oswestry, Keele, U.K.

The effect of the external spinal fixator on anterior column motion: A biomechanical study.
T. Lund, G. Rathonyi, T.R. Oxland
Helsinki, Finland, Budapest, Hungary, Bern, Switzerland

Best Paper and Poster Awards 1996

PAPER AWARDS
The method, the means or the message? An educational approach to low back pain. A three years follow up of a randomized clinical trial.
A Indahl, EMH Haldorsen, H Ursin, O Reikeras, Fredrikstad, Norway

Conservative treatment of lumbar spineal stenosis with prostaglandin E1 derivative – results of a double-blind multi-center trial.
M Uratsuji, A Kurihara, N Sha, Y Ooi, Kobe, Japan

The role of cytokines in neuropathic pain.
JA DeLeo and RW Colburn, Lebanon, USA

POSTER AWARDS
Phospholipase A2 sensitivity of the dorsal root and dorsal root ganglion.
AC Ozaktay, S Kallakuri and JM Cavanaugh, Detroit, USA

Turnover of the connective tissue matrix in diseased intervertebral disc.
JKG Crean, S Roberts, S Eisenstein, VC Duance, Oswestry, UK

Lumbar spinal fusion. A comparison of anterior and instrumented postero-lateral technique
CG Greenough, MD Peterson, LJ Taylor, S Hadlow, RD Fraser, Cleveland UK and Adelaide, Australia

Best Paper and Poster Awards 1995

The peptidergic fibers of the rat lumbar dura mater with special references to sympathetic and sensory nerves
Y Sekiguchi, Y Konnai, S Kikuchi, Y Sugiura, Fukushima, Japan

Can absenteeism due to low back trouble be reduced by psychosocial intervention at the workplace?
T Symonds, K Burton, M Tillotson, C Main, Huddersfiel, UK

Best Paper and Poster Awards 1994

BEST PAPER
Response of lumbar dorsal roots and dorsal root ganglia to locally applied pressure and chemical agents: An in vitro neurophysiological study
JM Cavanaugh, S Vaidyanathan, AC Ozakty and S Kallakuri

Epidural pressure measurement in the patients with lumbar spinal stenosis
Keisuke Takahashi, T Miyazaki, T Takino, K Tomita

Degeneration in the adjacent level above lumbar fusion
KP Schulitz, J Assheuer, P Wehling

The significance of axial traction – Straight leg raising test in diagnosis of lumbar disc herniation
C Chen, Z Zhao, H Jiang

Reposition of the burst fracture fragment: The effects of loads
M Kifune, MM Panjabi, M Arand, W Liu, A Vasavada, TR Oxland