title: Osteoporotic vertebral fractures: a disabling and expensive disease of our century. A minimally invasive surgical technique to reduce the pain, the hospitalization, and restore the function.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Minimally invasive spine surgery has gained a great consent in the treatment of vertebral osteoporotic fractures. We perform a retrospective clinical and radiographic review on 32 consecutive patients (22 female and 10 male) surgically treated for a thoracolumbar osteoporotic fracture (type A) by a minimally invasive system. By this study, we propose to determine the safety and efficacy of an expandable, percutaneous, minimally invasive technique to reduce the disability caused by vertebral osteoporotic fractures.
  
  
  METHODS
  We retrospectively reviewed 32 patients who were operated on between 2003 and 2004 by means of an innovative technique which employs an expandable system inserted by a minimally invasive approach into the vertebral body. Average age at surgery was 64.8 years (range, 27-82). All patients were mobilized in first post-operative day with no external immobilization and discharged from the Hospital in the second post-operative day.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This innovative technique which employs an expandable system inserted by a minimally-invasive approach into the vertebral body permits to obtain a double mechanical support for the vertebral plate, to partially reduce the fracture, to mobilize the patient immediately, reducing disability and costs related to the vertebral osteoporotic fractures.
authors.affiliation: Oncological and Degenerative Spine Surgery, Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy. giovanni@barbantibrodano.com
authors.forename: G Barbanti
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Bròdano
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Colangeli
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Babbi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gasbarrini
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bandiera
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Terzi
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Griffoni
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Di Fiore
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Boriani
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Corghi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Boriani
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019060:Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D010024:Osteoporosis / Q000150:complications*; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D020127:Recovery of Function; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery