Gastrostomy tube placement increases the risk of ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection: a multiinstitutional study.

Objective: Gastrostomy tube placement can temporarily seed the peritoneal cavity with bacteria and thus theoretically increases the risk of shunt infection when the two procedures are performed contemporaneously. The authors hypothesized that gastrostomy tube placement would not increase the risk of ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection. The object of this study was to test this hypothesis by utilizing a large patient cohort combined from multiple institutions.

Multi-level corpectomies and reconstruction via a single posterolateral approach.

The surgical treatment of ventral spinal canal compression has traditionally required either an anterior or combined anterior-posterior decompression and stabilization. These types of approaches carry a significant morbidity and may not be appropriate for all patients. We report our experience with multi-level corpectomies and reconstruction performed via a single, posterolateral approach.

Minimally invasive image-guided direct repair of bilateral L-5 pars interarticularis defects.

Lower back pain from spondylolysis historically has been treated with a variety of options ranging from conservative care to open fusion. The authors describe the novel technique of minimally invasive bilateral pars interarticularis screw placement by utilizing intraoperative 3D imaging and frameless navigation in a 17-year-old male athlete. This technique is a modification of the open technique first described in 1970 by Buck and has the advantages of minimal dissection requirements with improved screw trajectory visualization.