<h3>BACKGROUND CONTEXT</h3> Although frequently used for anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF), concerns regarding the use of recombinant human bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2) include off-label use, elevated cost and adverse outcomes such as osteolysis. The growing evolution of porous implant technology in promoting osseous integration via ingrowth provides an opportunity for a paradigm shift by relying less on biologic-assisted through-growth and leveraging implant on-growth and in-growth in similar fashion to porous metallic implants used in other orthopedic settings such as hip arthroplasty. <h3>PURPOSE</h3> This study compared perioperative clinical and radiographic outcomes between patients undergoing ALIF with the assistance of BMP-2 in a nonporous, traditional window interbody cage vs those with no biologic using a minimal-window porous titanium interbody cage. <h3>STUDY DESIGN/SETTING</h3> Retrospective clinical. <h3>PATIENT SAMPLE</h3> This study retrospectively examined 75 consecutive patients who underwent 1- or 2-level ALIF between 2014 and 2020 with the use of BMP-2 in a nonporous PEEK cage vs a porous titanium interbody cage and no biologic. All patients had surgery with the senior surgeon and were followed for a minimum follow-up of 6-months postoperatively. <h3>OUTCOME MEASURES</h3> Patient demographics, comorbidities, postoperative complications, and preoperative, immediate and final postoperative patient-reported outcomes (PROs) were assessed. Rates of reoperation were recorded, and arthrodesis was evaluated using Bridwell radiographic criteria and CT when available. Pre- and postoperative radiographic parameters were evaluated for differences in spinopelvic alignment and correction. <h3>METHODS</h3> Statistical methods included student's t-test and chi-square for continuous and categorical variables, respectively. Continuous variables were reported as means and standard deviations, and categorical variables as proportions. The threshold for statistical significance was set to p < .05. <h3>RESULTS</h3> Forty-three (13 female, 30 male) and 32 (19 female, 13 male) patients were assessed in the BMP-2 and titanium cage cohorts, respectively. On PRO assessment, baseline VAS leg among BMP-2 patients (6.87, SD: 1.96 vs 5.16, SD: 2.41; p = .023) while the titanium cage group reported worse VAS back scores (6.23, SD: 2.39 vs 7.82, SD: 1.40; p = .023). However, there were no significant differences recorded in postoperative PRO surveys between groups. Correction of spinopelvic alignment was equally maintained between groups at final follow-up when compared to immediate postoperative radiographs. Similarly, disc spaces were equivalently upheld across cohorts, with the exception of greater degeneration among BMP-2 patients at the L4-L5 anterior (-1.78, SD: 3.00 vs -0.07, SD: 2.63; p = .039) and foraminal (-2.34, SD: 3.11 vs -0.07, SD: 2.06; p = .006) disc spaces. Interbody subsidence was similar at the superior (1.13, SD: 0.84 vs 1.28, SD: 0.88; p = .458) and inferior endplates (0.55, SD: 0.79 vs 0.91, SD: 1.27; p = .154), and radiographic evidence of fusion was observed at equivalent rates (90% vs 90.9%, p = .776). There were no differences in the rates of secondary surgeries for adjacent segment disease (ASD) (4.6% vs 0%, p = .222) or index-level revisions (9.1% vs 18.8%, p = .219). <h3>CONCLUSIONS</h3> Porous titanium interbody cages for ALIF may be equivalent to BMP-2 in nonporous PEEK in achieving arthrodesis, alignment durability and reoperation rates. Although long-term follow-up is necessary, the use of porous titanium implants without external biologics is an intriguing paradigm change which may produce similar outcomes at lower costs. <h3>FDA DEVICE/DRUG STATUS</h3> Alphatec Identiti Cage (Approved for this indication), Recombinant Human Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2 (Approved for this indication)
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