An evaluation of the results of two non-surgical methods in the treatment of fractures of the odontoid process.
The authors illustrate the results of a series of 47 fractures of the odontoid process all treated according to two non-surgical methods, among the most diffused and accepted: Minerva plaster and halo-plaster. The various elements used to classify odontoid fractures are examined, as is their importance for prognosis. The conclusions refer to two essential points: 1) fractures with a higher risk of nonunion are Anderson type II, with posterior shifting, in elderly patients; 2) reduction and immobilization with a halo-plaster may be considered the first choice of a method for most of these fractures, in consideration of the limited risk of nonunion involved.
Della Torre
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Dipartimento di Specialità Medico-Chirurgiche, Sezione di Ortopedia e Traumatologia, Università degli Studi, Perugia.
Fiacca
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Lignini
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D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002370:Casts, Surgical; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009809:Odontoid Process / Q000293:injuries*; D011542:Pseudarthrosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy*