We reviewed seven children with torticollis due to refractory atlanto-axial rotatory fixation who were treated in a
Aims. We performed a retrospective, comparative study of elderly patients
with an increased risk from anaesthesia who had undergone either
anterior screw fixation (ASF) or
In type-II fractures of the odontoid process, the treatment is either conservative in a
The aim of this study was to determine whether early surgical treatment results in better neurological recovery 12 months after injury than late surgical treatment in patients with acute traumatic spinal cord injury (tSCI). Patients with tSCI requiring surgical spinal decompression presenting to 17 centres in Europe were recruited. Depending on the timing of decompression, patients were divided into early (≤ 12 hours after injury) and late (> 12 hours and < 14 days after injury) groups. The American Spinal Injury Association neurological (ASIA) examination was performed at baseline (after injury but before decompression) and at 12 months. The primary endpoint was the change in Lower Extremity Motor Score (LEMS) from baseline to 12 months.Aims
Methods
The outcome following the development of neurological complications after corrective surgery for scoliosis varies from full recovery to a permanent deficit. This study aimed to assess the prognosis and recovery of major neurological deficits in these patients, and to determine the risk factors for non-recovery, at a minimum follow-up of two years. A major neurological deficit was identified in 65 of 8,870 patients who underwent corrective surgery for scoliosis, including eight with complete paraplegia and 57 with incomplete paraplegia. There were 23 male and 42 female patients. Their mean age was 25.0 years (SD 16.3). The aetiology of the scoliosis was idiopathic (n = 6), congenital (n = 23), neuromuscular (n = 11), neurofibromatosis type 1 (n = 6), and others (n = 19). Neurological function was determined by the American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) impairment scale at a mean follow-up of 45.4 months (SD 17.2). the patients were divided into those with recovery and those with no recovery according to the ASIA scale during follow-up.Aims
Methods
With the identification of literature shortfalls on the techniques employed in intraoperative navigated (ION) spinal surgery, we outline a number of measures which have been synthesised into a coherent operative technique. These include positioning, dissection, management of the reference frame, the grip, the angle of attack, the drill, the template, the pedicle screw, the wire, and navigated intrathecal analgesia. Optimizing techniques to improve accuracy allow an overall reduction of the repetition of the surgical steps with its associated productivity benefits including time, cost, radiation, and safety. Cite this article:
The timing of surgical fixation in spinal fractures is a contentious topic. Existing literature suggests that early stabilization leads to reduced morbidity, improved neurological outcomes, and shorter hospital stay. However, the quality of evidence is low and equivocal with regard to the safety of early fixation in the severely injured patient. This paper compares complication profiles between spinal fractures treated with early fixation and those treated with late fixation. All patients transferred to a national tertiary spinal referral centre for primary surgical fixation of unstable spinal injuries without preoperative neurological deficit between 1 July 2016 and 20 October 2017 were eligible for inclusion. Data were collected retrospectively. Patients were divided into early and late cohorts based on timing from initial trauma to first spinal operation. Early fixation was defined as within 72 hours, and late fixation beyond 72 hours.Aims
Methods
To address the natural history of severe post-tuberculous (TB)
kyphosis, with focus upon the long-term neurological outcome, occurrence
of restrictive lung disease, and the effect on life expectancy. This is a retrospective clinical review of prospectively collected
imaging data based at a single institute. A total of 24 patients
of Southern Chinese origin who presented with spinal TB with a mean
of 113° of kyphosis (65° to 159°) who fulfilled inclusion criteria
were reviewed. Plain radiographs were used to assess the degree
of spinal deformity. Myelography, CT and MRI were used when available
to assess the integrity of the spinal cord and canal. Patient demographics,
age of onset of spinal TB and interventions, types of surgical procedure,
intra- and post-operative complications, and neurological status
were assessed. Aims
Patients and Methods
The aim of this study was to compare the outcomes of surgery
using growing rods in patients with severe A review of a multicentre EOS database identified 107 children
with severe EOS (major curve ≥ 90°) treated with growing rods before
the age of ten years with a minimum follow-up of two years and three
or more lengthening procedures. From the same database, 107 matched
controls with moderate EOS were identified.Aims
Patients and Methods
Rates of mortality as high as 25% to 30% have been described
following fractures of the odontoid in the elderly population. The
aim of this study was to examine whether easily identifiable variables
present on admission are associated with mortality. A consecutive series of 83 elderly patients with a fracture of
the odontoid following a low-impact injury was identified retrospectively.
Data that were collected included demographics, past medical history
and the results of blood tests on admission. Radiological investigations
were used to assess the Anderson and D’Alonzo classification and
displacement of the fracture. The mean age was 82.9 years (65 to
101). Most patients (66; 79.5%) had a type 2 fracture. An associated
neurological deficit was present in 11 (13.3%). All were treated
conservatively; 80 (96.4%) with a hard collar and three (3.6%) with
halo vest immobilisation.Aims
Patients and Methods
Fractures of the odontoid peg are common spinal
injuries in the elderly. This study compares the survivorship of
a cohort of elderly patients with an isolated fracture of the odontoid
peg A total of 32 patients with an isolated odontoid fracture were
identified. The rate of mortality was 37.5% (n = 12) at one year.
The period of greatest mortality was within the first 12 weeks.
Time made a lesser contribution from then to one year, and there
was no impact of time on the rate of mortality thereafter. The rate
of mortality at one year was 41.2% for male patients (7 of 17) compared
with 33.3% for females (5 of 15). The rate of mortality at one year was 32% (225 of 702) for patients
with a fracture of the hip and 4% (9 of 221) for those with a fracture
of the wrist. There was no statistically significant difference
in the rate of mortality following a hip fracture and an odontoid
peg fracture (p = 0.95). However, the survivorship of the wrist
fracture group was much better than that of the odontoid peg fracture
group (p <
0.001). Thus, a fracture of the odontoid peg in the
elderly is not a benign injury and is associated with a high rate
of mortality, especially in the first three months after the injury. Cite this article:
There are many causes of paraspinal muscle weakness which give rise to the dropped-head syndrome. In the upper cervical spine the central portion of the spinal cord innervates the cervical paraspinal muscles. Dropped-head syndrome resulting from injury to the central spinal cord at this level has not previously been described. We report two patients who were treated acutely for this condition. Both presented with weakness in the upper limbs and paraspinal cervical musculature after a fracture of C2. Despite improvement in the strength of the upper limbs, the paraspinal muscle weakness persisted in both patients. One ultimately underwent cervicothoracic fusion to treat her dropped-head syndrome. While the cause of the dropped-head syndrome cannot be definitively ascribed to the injuries to the spinal cord, this pattern is consistent with the known patho-anatomical mechanisms of both injury to the central spinal cord and dropped-head syndrome.
In a multicentre, randomised study of adolescents undergoing
posterior spinal fusion for idiopathic scoliosis, we investigated
the effect of adding gelatine matrix with human thrombin to the
standard surgical methods of controlling blood loss. Patients in the intervention group (n = 30) were randomised to
receive a minimum of two and a maximum of four units of gelatine
matrix with thrombin in addition to conventional surgical methods
of achieving haemostasis. Only conventional surgical methods were
used in the control group (n = 30). We measured the intra-operative
and total blood loss (intra-operative blood loss plus post-operative
drain output).Aims
Patients and Methods
We assessed the frequency and causes of neurological
deterioration in 59 patients with spinal cord injury on whom reports
were prepared for clinical negligence litigation. In those who deteriorated
neurologically we assessed the causes of the change in neurology
and whether that neurological deterioration was potentially preventable.
In all 27 patients (46%) changed neurologically, 20 patients (74%
of those who deteriorated) had no primary neurological deficit.
Of those who deteriorated, 13 (48%) became Frankel A. Neurological
deterioration occurred in 23 of 38 patients (61%) with unstable
fractures and/or dislocations; all 23 patients probably deteriorated
either because of failures to immobilise the spine or because of
inappropriate removal of spinal immobilisation. Of the 27 patients who
altered neurologically, neurological deterioration was, probably,
avoidable in 25 (excess movement in 23 patients with unstable injuries,
failure to evacuate an epidural haematoma in one patient and over-distraction following
manipulation of the cervical spine in one patient). If existing
guidelines and standards for the management of actual or potential
spinal cord injury had been followed, neurological deterioration
would have been prevented in 25 of the 27 patients (93%) who experienced
a deterioration in their neurological status. Cite this article:
This study assessed the frequency of acute injury to the spinal cord in Irish Rugby over a period of ten years, between 1995 and 2004. There were 12 such injuries; 11 were cervical and one was thoracic. Ten occurred in adults and two in schoolboys. All were males playing Rugby Union and the mean age at injury was 21.6 years (16 to 36). The most common mechanism of injury was hyperflexion of the cervical spine and the players injured most frequently were playing at full back, hooker or on the wing. Most injuries were sustained during the tackle phase of play. Six players felt their injury was preventable. Eight are permanently disabled as a result of their injury.
The presacral retroperitoneal approach for axial lumbar interbody fusion (presacral ALIF) is not widely reported, particularly with regard to the mid-term outcome. This prospective study describes the clinical outcomes, complications and rates of fusion at a follow-up of two years for 26 patients who underwent this minimally invasive technique along with further stabilisation using pedicle screws. The fusion was single-level at the L5-S1 spinal segment in 17 patients and two-level at L4–5 and L5-S1 in the other nine. The visual analogue scale for pain and Oswestry Disability Index scores were recorded pre-operatively and during the 24-month study period. The evaluation of fusion was by thin-cut CT scans at six and 12 months, and flexion-extension plain radiographs at six, 12 and 24 months. Significant reductions in pain and disability occurred as early as three weeks postoperatively and were maintained. Fusion was achieved in 22 of 24 patients (92%) at 12 months and in 23 patients (96%) at 24 months. One patient (4%) with a pseudarthrosis underwent successful revision by augmentation of the posterolateral fusion mass through a standard open midline approach. There were no severe adverse events associated with presacral ALIF, which in this series demonstrated clinical outcomes and fusion rates comparable with those of reports of other methods of interbody fusion.
We evaluated the efficacy of anterior fusion alone compared with combined anterior and posterior fusion for the treatment of degenerative cervical kyphosis. Anterior fusion alone was undertaken in 15 patients (group A) and combined anterior and posterior fusion was carried out in a further 15 (group B). The degree and maintenance of the angle of correction, the incidence of graft subsidence, degeneration at adjacent levels and the rate of fusion were assessed radiologically and clinically and the rate of complications recorded. The mean angle of correction in group B was significantly higher than in group A (p = 0.0009). The mean visual analogue scale and the neck disability index in group B was better than in group A (p = 0.043, 0.0006). The mean operation time and the blood loss in B were greater than in group A (p <
0.0001, 0.037). Pseudarthrosis, subsidence of the cage, and problems related to the hardware were more prevalent in group A than in group B (p = 0.034, 0.025, 0.013). Although the combined procedure resulted in a longer operating time and greater blood loss than with anterior fusion alone, our results suggest that for the treatment of degenerative cervical kyphosis the combined approach leads to better maintenance of sagittal alignment, a higher rate of fusion, a lower incidence of complications and a better clinical outcome.
