Treatment of thoracolumbar burst fractures in young adults with posterior short-segment pedicle screw fixation without fusion / 中国矫形外科杂志

ABSTRACT

[Objective]To evaluate the outcomes of treating thoracolumbar burst fractures in young adults with posterior short-segment pedicle screw fixation without fusion by analyzing the clinical and radiographic parameters.[Method]Fifty-four patients with thoracolumbar burst fractures from June 2002 to April 2006 were investigated retrospectively.Thirty-one patients were male and 23 were female.The mean age was 31 years.All patients underwent open reduction and posterior short-segment pedicle screw fixation without bone graft fusion,and had their implants removed at 12 to 20 months post-operatively.Pain status was evaluated using the visual analog scale(VAS).Changes in the anterior vertebral height ratio,Cobb′s angle,and vertebral wedge angle were measured preoperatively,postoperatively,before implant removal,and at 2 years after implant removal.[Result]Thirty-two patients were available to follow-up,with an average period of 43 months(range,36-56 months).A good correction was gained and pain was released significantly after surgery.The loss of correction was statistically significant and there were 4 patients suffering from screw broken before the instrumentation removal,however.A progressive kyphotic deformity (Cobb′s angle increased while vertebral wedge angle unchanged) was caused by the collapse of the intervertebral disc space while the reduced vertebral height was stable after the implant removal.No significant correlation was found between the final kyphosis and pain scale.[Conclusion]Short-segment pedicle screw fixation without fusion can provide good reduction and sustained corrective height if adequat indication of thoracolumbar burst fractures has been choosen.Earlier implant removal can regain local segmental motion.