When you have been suffering from the pain of vertebral fractures as a result of osteoporosis, your doctors will likely recommend a minimally invasive surgery, either vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty. Not only will these surgeries ease your pain, but they can help to prevent further damage. Because osteoporosis causes lower bone density leading to fractures along the vertebrae, these surgeries aim to use X-ray guidance in order to place cement into the damaged vertebra to secure them.
As the main cause of compression fractures along the spine, osteoporosis affects more than 40 million Americans, and another 18 million are at risk of developing it. One vertebrae fracture increases your likelihood of developing a second one significantly, which is why it is so important for patients to treat their osteoporosis before it causes a fracture or break.
This vertebral augmentation surgery is typically performed while the patient is awake but sedated, lying face down. With the help of X-ray guidance, your doctor will insert a thin needle into the damaged vertebrae. Once in the correct position, he will then inject bone cement to stabilize the fracture. It will take about 15 minutes for the cement to harden; afterwards, you should feel immediate results.
While a kyphoplasty procedure can be done with just local anesthesia, it is typically done with the patient under general anesthesia. Once again, the patient will be face down on the operating table while a balloon catheter is inserted into the damaged vertebrae. Once it is in the correct position, with the help of X-ray guidance, the balloon is inflated with liquid. As it inflates, the balloon restores the fracture by correcting the incorrect position of the vertebrae. After it is fully inflated, your doctor will deflate and remove it, and then fill the empty space with bone cement. The cement will harden and hold the vertebrae in the correct place.
When it comes to helping reduce the pain associated with a fractured vertebrae, both of these surgeries are successful about 90% of the time.
Many people will mistake the signs and symptoms of osteoporosis with the symptoms of aging. If you have been experiencing back pain, contact us today. You may be suffering from low bone density. The doctors at Florida Spine Institute will be able to correctly diagnose your pain and create a complete treatment plan for you.
