Spine
-
Intermittent pneumatic compression stockings (IPC) alone were prospectively used to avoid deep venous thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) in 100 consecutive patients undergoing single-level anterior corpectomy/fusion (ACF) and in 100 patients having multilevel ACF/posterior fusion. ⋯ IPCs were as effective for prophylaxis against DVT/PE for 100 patients undergoing single-level ACF and for 100 having circumferential procedures as existing therapies (mini-heparin and low-dose heparin), without the risk of hemorrhage. However, the 1% and 2% respective rates of PE were comparable to frequencies of PE encountered in other cranial/spinal series using mini-heparin and/or low-dose heparin regimens but avoided the 2% to 4% risk of major postoperative hemorrhage.
-
Case Reports
Anterior cervical screw extrusion leading to acute upper airway obstruction: case report.
Case report of late postoperative complication. ⋯ We report a case of acute upper airway obstruction from prevertebral abscess, likely secondary to a loosened anterior cervical screw penetrating the prevertebral soft tissue. In contrast to case reports in the literature involving instrumentation extrusion with a usually benign outcome, our case presented with a life-threatening condition.
-
Prospective study of patients with lumbar disc herniations who were operated on with a full-endoscopic uniportal transforaminal approach using an extreme lateral access. ⋯ The technique presented is an adequate and safe alternative to conventional procedures, and has the advantages of a truly minimally invasive procedure. The extreme lateral access is required for the indications described. There are clear limitations outside these indications. The possibility of selecting an access from posterolateral to extreme lateral now enables surgery of lumbar disc herniations inside and outside the spinal canal.
-
A biomechanical study on a pneumatically controlled 7-axis spine simulator using Delron and human cadaveric spine models. ⋯ This extension plate appears to be biomechanically equivalent to the ABC cervical plates with which it was compared in this study.
-
An in vitro biomechanical study of different pedicle screw configuration usage on the thoracic spine using a cadaveric model. ⋯ Our results suggest that the most important factor for the acute postoperative stability of spinal fixation is the degree of preoperative or iatrogenic destabilization. The minimum amount of pedicle screws provides adequate stability when there is minimal destabilization of the spine. On the other hand, when anterior column release has been performed or instability exists before surgery, segmental pedicle screw fixation may be necessary to achieve adequate stability.