Biomechanics of posterior dynamic stabilizing device (DIAM) after facetectomy and discectomy.

Background Context: Lumbar fusion has been associated with inconsistent clinical outcomes and significant complications. Posterior dynamic devices have been developed to stabilize painful diseased lumbar motion segments while avoiding fusion. The Device for Intervertebral Assisted Motion (DIAM) is a silicone interspinous process "bumper" that is being clinically implanted for varied indications.

Response of Charité total disc replacement under physiologic loads: prosthesis component motion patterns.

Background Context: Total disc replacement (TDR) has been recommended to reduce pain of presumed discogenic origin while preserving spinal motion. The floating core of Charité TDR is professed to allow the replication of the kinematics of a healthy disc under physiologic loads. While segmental motion after Charité TDR has been measured, little is known about the effects of a physiologic compressive preload on vertebral motion and the motion of prosthesis components after TDR.

Restoring geometric and loading alignment of the thoracic spine with a vertebral compression fracture: effects of balloon (bone tamp) inflation and spinal extension.

Background Context: In patients with osteoporosis, changes in spinal alignment after a vertebral compression fracture (VCF) are believed to increase the risk of fracture of the adjacent vertebrae. The alterations in spinal biomechanics as a result of osteoporotic VCF and the effects of deformity correction on the loads in the adjacent vertebral bodies are not fully understood.

Purpose: To measure 1) the effect of thoracic VCFs on kyphosis (geometric alignment) and the shift of the physiologic compressive load path (loading alignment), 2) the effect of fracture reduction by balloon (bone tamp) inflation in restoring normal geometric and loading alignment and 3) the effect of spinal extension alone on fracture reduction and restoration of normal geometric and loading alignment.

Balloon kyphoplasty for the treatment of pathological vertebral compressive fractures.

Background: Previous clinical studies have shown the safety and effectiveness of balloon kyphoplasty in the treatment of pathological vertebral compression fractures (VCFs). However, they have not dealt with the impact of relatively common comorbid conditions in this age group, such as spinal stenosis, and they have not explicitly addressed the use of imaging as a prognostic indicator for the restoration of vertebral body height. Neither have these studies dealt with management and technical problems related to surgery, nor the effectiveness of bone biopsy during the same surgical procedure.

Minimally invasive surgery for ablation of osteoid osteoma of the spine.

Study Design: Compare the effectiveness of two different techniques for the management of osteoid osteoma of the spine.

Objective: To describe the technique, feasibility, and indications of two different minimally invasive surgical methods for the treatment of osteoid osteoma of the spine.

Summary Of The Background Data: Current treatment of osteoid osteoma of the spine is usually conventional surgical excision.

Serratia spondylodiscitis after elective lumbar spine surgery: a report of two cases.

Study Design: This report describes two cases of acute spondylodiscitis, caused by, complicating two different conditions: microdiscectomy for herniated nucleus pulposus and decompressing laminotomy for spinal stenosis.

Objective: To describe a rare and life-threatening spinal infection and discuss its successful management.

Summary Of Background Data: To our knowledge, no published reports in the English language have described this potentially devastating infection as a complication of elective noninstrumented discectomy or decompressive laminotomy.