title: [Discopathies after fractures and destructive vertebral lesions during rheumatismal pelvispondylitis].
abstract: In three cases of rheumatic spondylitis, fracture across the disc of an ankylosed spinal segment (C5-C6, D7-D8, and D12-L1 respectively) resulted in rapid development of a discopathy with destruction of the adjacent vertebral bodies. In one of these cases, surgical exposure of the focus permitted anatomical study of the lesion; the changes that had developed after the fracture were inflammatory in appearance, which at first suggested infection by non-specific micro-organisms, an assumption that was rapidly abandoned. This misleading histological appearance largely explains why these destructive discopathies in spondylitis have long been regarded as a consequence of the rheumatic process itself. A review is presented of the arguments which suggest that they have, in fact, a mechanical pathogenesis, often determined by a fracture. From this it may be concluded that the treatment of choice is temporary immobilization in moderate cases and surgery with transplantation in complicated or unstable cases.
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001862:Bone Resorption / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D005592:Fracture Fixation; D050723:Fractures, Bone / Q000150:complications*; D050724:Fractures, Cartilage; D005598:Fractures, Spontaneous / Q000150:complications; D006801:Humans; D007403:Intervertebral Disc / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011542:Pseudarthrosis / Q000209:etiology; D013122:Spinal Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D013124:Spinal Injuries / Q000150:complications; D013131:Spine / Q000473:pathology; D013167:Spondylitis, Ankylosing / Q000150:complications*
vernacular_title: Discopathies post-fracturaires et lésions vertébrales destructrices au cours de la pelvispondylite rhumatismale