European Spine Journal is a publication founded in response to the increasing trend toward specialization in spinal surgery. The Journal is devoted to spine surgery and all related disciplines, including functional and surgical anatomy of the spine, biomechanics and pathophysiology, diagnostic procedures, and neurology. The aim of European Spine Journal is to support the further development of highly innovative spine treatments and to provide an integrated and balanced view of diagnostic, research and treatment procedures that will enhance effective collaboration among specialists worldwide.
Manuscripts submitted for publication must contain a statement to the effect that all human studies have been reviewed by the appropriate ethics committee and have therefore been performed in accordance with the ethical standards laid down in an appropriate version of the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki. It should also be stated clearly in the text that all persons gave their informed consent prior to their inclusion in the study. Details that might disclose the identity of the subjects under study should be omitted.

Reports of animal experiments must state that the "Principles of laboratory animal care" (NIH publication No. 86-23, revised 1985) were followed, as well as specific national laws (e.g. the current version of the German Law on the Protection of Animals) where applicable.

The coordinating editors reserve the right to reject manuscripts that do not comply with the above-mentioned requirements. The author will be held responsible for false statements or for failure to fulfil the above-mentioned requirements.

Editor-in-Chief
R. Gunzburg, Antwerp, Belgium
Deputy Editors
M. Aebi, Berne, Switzerland (E-learning)
P. Berjano, Locarno, Switzerland (Web-publishing, Social Media)
S. Blumenthal, Plano, USA (Reviews)
K. Edwards, Nottingham, UK (Statistics)
M. Ismael, Edinburgh, UK(Grand Rounds, Technical Notes and Case Reports)
C. Lamartina, Milan, Italy (Clinical Science)
M. Szpalski, Brussels, Belgium (Supplements)
H.-J. Wilke, Ulm, Germany (Basic Science)
A. Zerbi, Milan, Italy (Imaging)
Editorial Office
European Spine Journal
Mrs. Irene Zintel
Pfrundstrasse 36
3176 Neuenegg, Switzerland
Tel.: +41-31-889-0050
Fax: +41-31-889-0058
email: izintel@datacomm.ch
Statistics Task Force
A. Bhattacharya, Nottingham, UK 
O. Ifesemen, Nottingham, UK 
R. Pearson, Nottingham, UK
G. Popli, Sheffield, UK
Editorial Task Force
R. Cecchinato, Milan, Italy
C. Martini, Milan, Italy
A. Redaelli, Milan, Italy
Editorial Board
R.H.M.A. Bartels, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
A.D. Diwan, Kogarah, Australia
D. Samartzis, Chicago, USA 
K. A. Weissmann, Santiago, Chile

Advisory Board
E. Acaroglu, Ankara, Turkey
E. Aghayev, Bern, Switzerland
Y. Ahn, Seoul, Korea, Republic of
A. Alanay, Ankara, Turkey
H. Albert, Ringe, Denmark
M. Alini, Davos, Switzerland
L. Alvarez-Galovich, Spain
V. Arlet, Philadelphia, PA, USA 
C. M. Bach, Innsbruck, Austria
M. Balsano, Thiene, Italy
G. Barbagallo, Catania, Italy
C. Barrey, Lyon, France
P. Barsa, Liberec, Czech Republic
V. Bartanusz, Lausanne, Switzerland
T. Barz, Schwedt, Germany
T. Bas, Valencia, Spain
M. Benoist, Paris, France
H. Berk, Izmir, Turkey
F. Berryman, Birmingham, UK
N. Birch, Kettering, UK
C. Birkenmaier, Munich, Germany
W. Börm, Flensburg, Germany
C. Bolger, Dublin, Ireland
S. Boriani, Bologna, Italy
M. Brayda-Bruno, Milan, Italy
H. Brisby, Gothenburg, Sweden
V. Bullmann, Köln, Germany
M. Cabraja, Berlin, Germany
C. Cedraschi, Geneva, Switzerland
S. Cervellati, Bologna, Italy
X.-H. Cai, Wuhan, China
Y. P. Charles, Strasbourg, France
D. Chopin, Lille, France
C. J. Colloca, Phoenix, USA
P. Côté, Toronto, Canada
M. Crostelli, Rome, Italy
M. Czyz, Nottingham, UK
H.L.A. Defino, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
A. Dezawa, Kawasaki City, Japan
A. Di Martino, Rome, Italy
M. Di Silvestre, Bologna, Italy
M. Dittmar, Zapopan, Mexico
M. Doita, Iwate, Japan
P. Dolan, Bristol, UK
R. Dunn, Cape Town, South Africa
T. R. Easwar, Palakkad, India
A. Elfering Berne, Switzerland
A. Ermund, Gothenburg, Sweden
J.C.T. Fairbank, Headington, Oxford, UK
A. Fast, Tel Aviv, Israel
T. F. Fekete, Zurich, Switzerland
S. Ferguson, Zurich, Switzerland
Y. Floman, Tel Aviv, Israel
J. Franke, Dortmund, Germany
B.J.C. Freeman, Adelaide, SA, Australia
V.K. Goel, Toledo, OH, USA
Z.L. Gokaslan, Baltimore, MD, USA
M. J. Goytan, Winnipeg, Canada
M. Grönblad, Helsinki, Finland
M. C. Gupta, St. Louis, MO, USA
D.J. Hall, Adelaide, Australia
D. K. Hamilton, Pittsburgh, United States
A. Hamzaoglu, Istanbul, Turkey
C. C. Hasler, Basel, Switzerland
P.F. Heini, Berne, Switzerland
K. Ito, Eindhoven, Netherlands
L. Jiang, Beijing, China
W. Käfer, Kusel, Germany
A. Kaelin, Geneva, Switzerland
F. Kandziora, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
R. M. Kanna, Coimbatore, India
M. Kawakami, Ito Gun, Japan
D. Kletsas, Athens, Greece
H. Koller, Bad Wildungen-Reinhardshausen, Germany
A. Korge, Munich, Germany
P. Korovessis, Patras, Greece
A. Krödel, Essen, Germany
V. Lafage, New York, NY, USA
F. Lattig, Speicher, Switzerland
J.-C. Le Huec, Bordeaux, France 
J. Legaye, Yvoir, Belgium
I.H. Lieberman, Plano, TX, USA
U. Liljenqvist, Muenster, Germany 
B. Liu, Beijing, China
T. Lund, Helsinki, Finland
A. F. Mannion, Zurich, Switzerland
D.G. Marchesi, Lausanne, Switzerland
J.Y. Margulies, Pleasantville, NY, USA
W.S. Marras, Columbus, OH, USA
H.-M. Mayer, Munich, Germany
J. McAviney, Yowie Bay, Australia
A. H. McGregor, London, United Kingdom
J. S. Mehta, Swansea, United Kingdom
H.J. Meisel, Halle, Germany
B. Meyer, Munich, Germany
F. Meyer, Oldenburg, Germany
E. Müller, Klagenfurt, Austria
R.C. Mulholland, Nottingham, UK
E. Munting, Brussels, Belgium 
S. Naderi, Izmir, Turkey
C. Neidlinger-Wilke, Ulm, Germany
C. Nnadi, Oxford, UK 
M. Nordin, New York, NY, USA
S. Núñez-Pereira, Köln, Germany
I. Obeid, Bordeaux, France
J.K. O'Dowd, London, UK
F.C. Öner, Utrecht, Netherlands
A. Ohlin, Malmö, Sweden
L. Papavero, Hamburg, Germany
S. B. Park, Seoul, Korea, Rep.
H. Pascal-Moussellard, Paris, France
P.W. Pavlov, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
F. Pellisé-Urquiza, Barcelona, Spain (Reviews)
M. Pfeiffer, Loerrach, Germany 
J.L. Pinheiro-Franco, Sao Paolo, Brazil
T. Pigott, Liverpool, UK
L. H. Pimenta, Sao Paulo, Brazil
A. Ploumis, Ioannina, Greece
F. Postacchini, Rome, Italy
M. Putzier, Berlin, Germany
B. Qian, Nanjing, China
Y. Qiu, Nanjing, China
S. Rajasekaran, Ramnagar, Coimbatore, India
P. Roussouly, Lyon, France
B.J. van Royen, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
D-K. Ruan, Beijing, China
G. Sapkas, Athens, Greece
H. Saraste, Stockholm, Sweden
C.G. Schizas, Lausanne, Switzerland
D. Schlenzka, Helsinki, Finland
R. Schmidt, Göppingen, Germany
W. Schmoelz, Innsbruck, Austria
K.J. Schnake, Nürnberg/Fürth, Germany
CH. J. Siepe, Munich, Germany
M. Shafafy, Nottingham, UK
F. H. Shen, Charlottesville, United States
F.W. Smith, Aberdeen, UK
J.-P. Steib, Strasbourg, France
T.M. Stoll, Basle, Switzerland 
P. Suchomel, Liberec, Czech Republic
P. Tanchev, Sofia, Bulgaria
M. Teli, Liverpool, United Kingdom
C. Tello, Buenos Aires, Argentina
E. Tessitore, Geneva, Switzerland 
P. Tropiano, Marseille, France
M. van Tulder, Amsterdam, The Netherlands 
C. Ulbricht, London, United Kingdom 
Ch. Ulrich, Goeppingen, Germany
E. Van de Kelft, Sint-Niklaas, Belgium 
R. Vengust, Ljubljana, Slovenia
L.R. Vialle, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
C. Villanueva, Barcelona, Spain
J.-M. Vital, Bordeaux, France
J. Webb, Nottingham, UK
D. Welsh, Cape Town, South Africa
F.M.K. Williams, London, UK
D.A. Wong, USA
R.D. Zeller, Paris, France
M. Zileli, Izmir
M.R. Zindrick, USA
Assistant Editorial Board
S. Ahuja, Cardiff, UK
H. Ali, Egypt
R. Amaral, São Paulo, Brazil
T. Aoyama, Sapporo, Japan
R. Assaker, Lille, France
U. Aydinly, Bursa, Turkey
A. A. Baaj, New York, USA
J. Bagó, Barcelona, Spain
G. Barbanti-Brodano, Bologna, Italy
R. Bassani, Milan, Italy
A. Bekar, Bursa, Turkey 
U. Berlemann, Bern, Switzerland
C. Berry, Cincinnati, OH, USA
E. S. Bersusky, Buenos Aires, Argentina
G. Bodon, Esslingen, Germany
J. Booth, Nottingham, UK
A. Bosco, Chennai, India
S. Brambilla, Milan, Italy
S. Brown, Guelph, ON, Canada 
J. Cholewicki, Lansing, MI, USA
M.J. Colomina, Barcelona, Spain
G. B. Cornwall, Poway, CA, USA
G. Costanzo, Latina, Italy
R. Delfini, Rome, Italy
B. Depreitere, Leuven, Belgium
T.J. Dietrich, Zurich, Switzerland
A.S. Dumont, Charlottesville, VA, USA
T. Egloff, Münchenstein, Switzerland
P. Eysel, Cologne, Germany
M. R. Farrokhi, Shiraz, Iran
M. Farshad, Zurich, Switzerland
A. A. Faundez, Geneva, Switzerland
M.G. Fehlings, Toronto, ON, Canada
F. Ferreri, Rome, Italy
M. Formica, Genova, Italy
D. Fourney, Saskatoon, Canada
J.M. Fritz, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
P. Fritzell, Falun, Sweden
T. Furuya, Chiba, Japan
F. Galbusera, Milan, Italy
B. Gantenbein-Ritter, Bern, Switzerland
D. Garbossa, Torino, Italy
A. C. Gardner, Birmingham, UK
A. Gasbarrini, Bologna, Italy
M. Gehrchen, Copenhagen, Denmark
F. P. Girardi, New York, USA
E. Gobbi, Buenos Aires, Argentina
A. Goel, Mumbai, India
A. Gonzalvo, Heidelberg, Victoria, Australia
J. A.C. Guimarães Consciência, Portugal
B. Guiot, Littleton, CO, USA
G. Guizzardi, Florence, Italy
E. Hanafy, Hofuf, Saudi Arabia
N. Hansen-Algenstaedt, Hamburg, Germany
I. J. Harding, Bristol, UK
F. Hartmann, Koblenz, Germany
D. Haschtmann, Zurich, Switzerland
O.N. Hausmann, Luzern, Switzerland
I. J. Helenius, Turku, Finland
D.W.L. Hukins, Birmingham, UK
J.C. Iatridis, Burlington, VT, USA
H. Iizuka, Isesaki, Japan
B. Ilharreborde, Paris, France
A. Jackowski, Birmingham, UK
B. Jónsson, Harstad, Norway
S. R. Kantelhardt, Mainz, Germany
E. Kast, Winterthur, Switzerland
Z. Klezl, Derby, UK
M. Koda, Tsukuba, Japan
N. Kumar, Singapore, Singapore
P. Krepler, Vienna, Austria
F.P. Kuhn, Zurich, Switzerland
P. Lakshmanan, Sunderland, UK
K.S. Lam, London, UK
A. Lazary, Budapest, Hungary
L. Lenke, New York, NY, USA
K. Lippuner, Berne, Switzerland
S.V. Marawar, Syracuse, NY, USA
L. Marchi, São Paulo, Brazil
H. Mehdian, Nottingham, UK
M. Melloh, Winterthur, Switzerland
J. Melrose, St. Leonards, Australia
H. Mhaidli, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain
L. Miladi, Paris, France
J. Mineiro, Lisbon, Portugal
S. Minnella, Milan, Italy
H. Miyamoto, Kobe, Japan
H. Nagashima, Tottori, Japan
S. Negrini, Brescia, Italy 
D.J. Nuckley, Minneapolis, MN, USA
T. Odent, Paris, France
L. Oggiano, Rome, Italy
P. Otten, Fribourg, Switzerland
D. Ovadia, Tel-Aviv, Israel
P. D. Parchi, Milan, Italy
J.-B. Park, Uijeongbu, Korea, Rep.
M. Pecina, Zagreb, Croatia
A. Piazzolla, Bari, Italy
T. Pitzen, Homburg/Saar, Germany
J. Pizones, Madrid, Spain
N.A. Quraishi, Nottingham, UK
R. Reindl, Montreal, Canada
A. A. Reyes-Sanchez, Mexico City, Mexico
D. Riew, New York, NY, USA
M. Ruf, Karlsbad, Germany
A. Russo, Birmingham, UK
S. Schaeren, Basle, Switzerland
M. Scholz, Frankfurt a.M., Germany
C. Schonauer, Naples, Italy
M. Sekiguchi, Fukushima, Japan
A. Shirazi-Adl, Montreal, Canada
H.E. Smith, Philadelphia, USA
R. C. Soh, Singapore, Singapore
D. Thompson, London, UK
P. Trobisch, Simmerath, Germany
P. Tsitsopoulos, Thessaloniki, Greece
M. Turgut, Aydin, Turkey
P. Vajkoczy, Berlin, Germany
E. Vialle, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil 
X. Vidal, Barcelona, Spain
S. Vidyadhara, Bangalore, India
M. Visocchi, Rome, Italy
S. Wang, Boston, MA, USA
D. Wardlaw, Aberdeen, UK
W. Welch, Philadelphia, USA
R. Wohns, Seattle, USA
S.T. Yoon, Atlanta, GA, USA
W. Yuan, Shanghai, P.R. China
F. Zaina, Milan, Italy
B. Zárate-Kalfópulos, Mexico City, Mexico 
A. Zibis, Larissa, Greece

Honorary Editor
S. Nazarian, Marseille, France