The North American Spine Society (NASS) presented impactful research in spine care during the Best Paper Session at its Annual Meeting in Denver. Moderated by Brandon Lawrence, M.D., the session featured studies that redefine surgical risk assessment, explored the effects of emerging therapies and substances, and leveraged data-driven insights to enhance patient outcomes.

Held on the meeting’s second day, the Best Paper Session highlighted seven studies selected by the NASS Annual Meeting Program Committee for their scientific rigor, clinical relevance, and potential to influence the future of spine care.The full slate of Annual Meeting Best Papers included:

• Substance-specific complications after lumbar decompression: distinguishing the effects of tobacco, non-tobacco nicotine, and cannabis
• Non-tobacco nicotine dependence and incidence of pseudarthrosis and other postoperative complications in lumbar fusion surgery: a retrospective analysis
• Sensitivity and specificity of multimodal neuromonitoring for the detection of neurological adverse events in lumbar spine surgery
• Patients receiving GLP-1 agonists have reduced odds of pseudarthrosis and revision following anterior cervical discectomy and fusion surgery
• The effect of lumbar decompression on walking in patients with symptomatic lumbar degenerative disease
• The predictive value of Hounsfield units for titanium mesh cage subsidence after anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion
• Comparison of postoperative proton pump inhibitors vs. histamine H2-receptor antagonists use on complication rates following multilevel lumbar fusions

Best Papers represent the leading edge of research in spine care, offering evidence that challenges assumptions, sharpens clinical judgment, and shapes future standards of care. These studies exemplify NASS’ ongoing commitment to advancing multidisciplinary, evidence-based spine practice.

NASS is a global multidisciplinary medical organization dedicated to fostering high-quality, ethical, evidence- and value-based spine care by promoting education, research, and advocacy. NASS is comprised of approximately 7,000 members from several disciplines, including orthopedic surgery, neurosurgery, physiatry, radiology, anesthesiology, research, and physical therapy.