Flexible Stabilisation of the Degenerative Lumbar Spine Using PEEK Rods.

Posterior lumbar interbody fusion using cages, titanium rods, and pedicle screws is considered today as the gold standard of surgical treatment of lumbar degenerative disease and has produced satisfying long-term fusion rates. However this rigid material could change the physiological distribution of load at the instrumental and adjacent segments, a main cause of implant failure and adjacent segment disease, responsible for a high rate of further surgery in the following years. More recently, semirigid instrumentation systems using rods made of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) have been introduced.

[Imaging of traumatic injuries of the foot and ankle].

Traumatic injuries of the foot and ankle are frequent and constitute a true public health problem with over 6000 daily cases in France. The complex anatomy of this area and its association to other injuries in polytraumatized patients can lead to delayed diagnosis with worsened functional prognosis. Accurate diagnosis relies on good knowledge of osseous and ligamentous lesions and their associations and sometimes requires the use of additional imaging techniques including US and CT.

[Imaging of the diabetic foot].

Destruction in diabetic feet is secondary to neuropathy (peripheral and autonomic nervous system) in association with microangiopathy. The loss of sensation to pain and the static trouble lead to increase the pressure in some areas and predispose to pedal skin ulceration, the precursor of osteomyelitis. Plain radiography should be the first step in the evaluation for diagnosis and follow-up.

[Langherans' cell histiocytosis: a case report].

Langherans' cell histiocytosis is rare in adults. It should be considered in patients with lytic osseous lesions with sclerotic rim especially when involvement of adjacent soft tissues is present.

[Foraminal, epidural and intravertebral migration of a calcified degenerated intervertebral disk].

The authors report a case of inflammatory back pain associated with radiculopathy secondary to degenerative disk calcifications migrated within the foramen, epidural space and vertebral body. The purpose of this clinical case is to illustrate this uncommon cause of radiculopathy and avoid unnecessary invasive diagnostic procedures.