Posterior screw-plate system for treating old fracture of the odontoid process.
OBJECTIVE
To assess the efficacy of a screw-plate system for the treatment of old fracture of the odontoid process.


METHODS
Twenty-six patients with old fracture of the odontoid process were treated by a posterior screw-plate system. There were 17 men and 9 women ranging in age from 17 to 58 years (mean, 32.8 years). According to the Anderson-D'Alonzo classification, 19 patients were classified as type II, and 7 as type III. According to the Frankel classification, there were 3 patients of grade C, 21 of grade D and 2 of grade E.


RESULTS
All operations were successfully performed. The operation time was 75-120 min (mean, 90 min) and the intraoperative blood loss 50-200 ml (mean, 125 ml). There were no postoperative complications. All patients were followed up for 24-36 months. At the final follow-up, one patient had improved from grade C to grade D, two from grade C to grade E, and 15 from grade D to grade E. The other cases had remained stable. There was no breakage of nails or failure of internal fixation during follow-up. Stable bone union was observed in all cases, the average healing time being 7.8 months.


CONCLUSIONS
Posterior screw-plate system is a safe and effective method for treating old fracture of the odontoid process.
Department of Spine and Orthopaedics, First Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University, Nanning, China.
Ting-song
TS
Li
Zeng-ming
ZM
Xiao
Mao-lin
ML
He
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001860:Bone Plates; D001863:Bone Screws; D016025:Bone Transplantation / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005593:Fracture Fixation, Internal / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D016268:Internal Fixators; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009809:Odontoid Process / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries* / Q000601:surgery; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D013123:Spinal Fusion / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult