Percutaneous facet screw fixation of lumbar spine with CT and fluoroscopic guidance: a feasibility study.

PURPOSE: To assess the feasibility of computed tomography (CT)- and fluoroscopy-guided percutaneous facet screw fixation following anterior lumbar interbody fusion (ALIF) or anterior pseudarthrosis in adults. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Institutional review board approval and informed consent were obtained for this study. One hundred seven consecutive adult patients (46 men, 61 women; mean age ± standard deviation: 56.3 years ± 12.9) with ALIF (n = 79) or anterior pseudarthrosis (n = 28) were prospectively treated by means of percutaneous facet screw fixation with CT and fluoroscopic guidance. Two 4.0-mm cannulated screws were placed per level to fix facet joints by using either a translaminar facet or transfacet pedicle pathway. Only local anesthesia was used during these procedures. Procedural time was noted for each patient. Postoperative follow-up ranging from 1 year to 3 years was assessed by using Macnab and radiologic criteria. RESULTS: The mean procedure times for a lumbar single-level and a double-level fusion ranged from 15 to 25 minutes and from 40 to 50 minutes, respectively. All the transfacet pedicle (n = 182) and translaminar facet (n = 56) screws were successfully placed in one attempt. Radiographic fusion was observed within the year following posterior fixation in all patients despite one translaminar screw failure. According to the Macnab criteria, the clinical results were classified as excellent in 92 (86%) and good in 15 (14%) of 107 patients at the time of their last follow-up examination. CONCLUSION: This feasibility study showed that CT- and fluoroscopy-guided percutaneous facet screw fixation is a rapid, safe, and effective method.

Foreign body extraction from soft tissue by using CT and fluoroscopic guidance: a new technique.

We report on a new minimally invasive technique for the retrieval of a surgical pin fragment after accidental migration into the soft tissue of the shoulder in two patients. The technique is performed under local anaesthesia and uses combined CT and fluoroscopic guidance. The materials used were simple, combining a bone biopsy needle and an endoscopy clamp. Pin displacement was confirmed under fluoroscopic guidance and the clamp was used to withdraw the pin to the cutaneous entry point under CT (step-by-step) guidance. The CT slices provide perfect visualisation of the vascular or nervous structures as well as perfect positioning of the extremity of the trocar relative to the material to be removed. This intervention avoids a second surgical intervention with a longer incision and avoided repeated general anaesthesia.

Computed axial tomography-guided fixation of sacroiliac joint disruption: safety, outcomes, and results at 3-year follow-up.

Secondary to the progress in interventional imaging, new therapeutic options have been developed that decrease potential complications because they are minimally invasive and they decrease patient rehabilitation time. As a diagnostic modality, computed axial tomography (CAT) allows precise evaluation of the degree of sacroiliac reduction that must be performed. Moreover, the use of CAT enables easy positioning of screws across the sacroiliac joint, thus avoiding nerve and vascular damage. We report our clinical experience of 20 patients treated by CAT-guided percutaneous fixation for posttraumatic unilateral sacroiliac disruption, including evaluation of our technique, its safety, and patient outcomes and long-term results. All patients in this study had successful outcomes, which were judged according to how much pain they experienced and how quickly they resumed normal activity after the procedure. Twelve of 16 patients were able to return to work by postoperative month 2. One patient had degenerative sacroiliac joint syndrome (5%), which was confirmed 6 months after surgery by CAT scan. None of the patients showed radiologic or clinical evidence of instability of the sacroiliac joint or screw migration. Postoperative follow-up, performed at 1, 2, and 3 years in our rehabilitation department, showed stable results over time. All pain disappeared, without the need for medication, in 19 patients (95%).

Combined CT and fluoroscopic guidance of balloon kyphoplasty versus fluoroscopy-only procedures.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the performance of combined (computed tomography (CT) and fluoroscopic) guidance of balloon kyphoplasty in comparison to fluoroscopic guidance alone. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-one kyphoplasties were performed between January 2005 and March 2006 according to two different protocols. Study group 1 consisted of 20 consecutive patients with 20 balloon kyphoplasty procedures under dual guidance (CT scan and fluoroscopy) for osteoporotic or traumatic vertebral fractures. Study group 2 consisted of 21 consecutive patients in whom kyphoplasty was performed with fluoroscopy alone. Visualization of the pedicles, the final of the balloon position, and cement distribution were evaluated(1-poor, 2-intermediate, 3-good). RESULTS: Combined use of CT and fluoroscopy (group 1) was superior in identifying the pedicles (100% versus 66.7%, p = 0.009) and balloon placement (100% versus 71.4%, p = 0.02) but not in monitoring of cement distribution within the vertebral body (100% versus 90.5%, p = 0.49). The difference between the two groups was more pronounced in the thoracic spine than in the lumbar spine. CONCLUSION: CT/fluoroscopic guidance of kyphoplasty combines safe CT-guided insertion of the osteointroducers and balloons as well as fluoroscopic real-time monitoring of polymethylmethacrylate injection.

Aortic embolism of cement: a rare complication of lumbar percutaneous vertebroplasty.

An aortic embolus of cement occurred in a 72-year-old woman after lumbar percutaneous vertebroplasty for breast cancer metastasis. A CT scan during the procedure revealed cement migration into the aorta via the lumbar artery. The cement embolus in the aorta, along with the hook-shaped cement fragment in the lumbar artery, was asymptomatic. Thereafter, a CT scan 4 months later still showed the presence of cement in the aorta and the lumbar artery at the level of the vertebroplasty. The patient is free of complaints after 4 months without anticoagulant treatment. This rare complication occurred because the collateral arterial supplies to the breast metastasis and the retrograde migration of cement during the vertebroplasty were not recognized. Proper techniques can minimize the risk of arterial embolism caused by cement during the procedure.

Neer Award 2005: The Grammont reverse shoulder prosthesis: results in cuff tear arthritis, fracture sequelae, and revision arthroplasty.

This clinical study was performed to analyze the midterm results and potential complications of the reverse prosthesis in different diagnosis. Forty-five consecutive patients with Grammont prosthesis were evaluated clinically and radiographically with a mean follow-up of 40 months (range, 24-72 months). The indication was a massive and irreparable cuff tear associated with arthrosis (CTA) in 21 cases, fracture sequelae (FS) with arthritis in 5 cases, and failure of a revision arthroplasty (revision) in 19 cases. Fourteen complications occurred in 11 patients. 3 dislocations, 3 deep infections (all 3 in the revision group), 1 case of aseptic humeral loosening, 2 periprosthetic humeral fractures, 1 intraoperative glenoid fracture, 1 wound hematoma, 2 late acromial fractures, and 1 axillary nerve palsy. Of the patients, 10 (22%) required further surgery: 4 reoperations, 4 prosthesis revisions, and 2 prosthesis removals. Complications were higher in revision than in CTA (47% vs. 5%). All 3 groups showed a significant increase in active elevation (from 55 degrees preoperatively to 121 degrees postoperatively) and Constant score (from 17 to 58 points) but no significant change in active external rotation (from 7 degrees to 11 degrees ) or internal rotation (S1 preoperatively and postoperatively). Of the patients, 78% were satisfied or very satisfied with the result and 67% had no or slight pain. However, the postoperative Constant score, adjusted Constant score, and American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons shoulder score were all significantly higher in the CTA group with as compared with the revision group (P = .01, .004, and .002, respectively). Scapular notching was seen in 24 cases (68%). No glenoid loosening was observed at current follow-up, even when the notch extended beyond the inferior screw (28% of cases). Atrophy of severe fatty infiltration of the teres minor was associated with lower external rotation (15 degrees vs 0 degrees , P = .02) and lower functional results (Constant score of 46 points vs 66 points, P < .007). The Grammont reverse prosthesis can improve function and restore active elevation in patients with incongruent cuff-deficient shoulders; active rotation is usually unchanged. Results are less predictable and complication and revision rates are higher in patients undergoing revision surgery as compared with those in patients with CTA. Results of the reverse prosthesis depend on the diagnosis and on the remaining cuff muscles, specifically the teres minor. Surgeons should be vigilant with regard to low-grade infection in revision surgery.

Clinical follow-up of 50 patients treated by percutaneous lumbar discectomy.

A series of 50 patients presenting with lumbar discogenic disease, and treated by percutaneous discectomy using the Dekompressor system (Stryker, Kalamazoo, MI, USA), were followed for more than 6 months, by analyzing the evolution of the painful symptomatology with the visual analog scale (VAS) system. All patients had been under treatment with analgesic or anti-inflammatory agents. The intensity of the pain was measured 2, 7, 30, and 180 days after the percutaneous discectomy. An improvement in the painful symptomatology of less than 30%, observed in 11 cases and in 1 case of epidural pathology, was considered an unsuccessful result. A decrease of the pain of more than 70% was observed in 72% of cases, either with the end of the symptoms of pain as noted in 79.5% of patients or with a marked reduction of the medical treatments obtained in 21.5%. The results obtained were already almost definitive at the seventh day of follow-up, and further controls rarely demonstrated an improvement in the pain. The location of the herniated disc is a parameter which appears to be very important in the efficacy of percutaneous discectomy. We noted an improvement of more than 70% in 79% of the posterolateral foraminal or extraforaminal hernias, although these favorable results were observed only in 50% of the posteromedian hernias.