title: Age- and gender-related variations in morphometric characteristics of thoracic spine pedicle: A study of 4,800 pedicles.
abstract: Transpedicular spinal fusion is the most commonly used fixation technique for the surgical treatment of vertebral disorders. However, the instrumentation of the thoracic spine using this technique continues to be controversial. The objective of the present study was to determine the morphometric characteristics of the thoracic pedicle and to establish how these characteristics vary with gender and age. Two hundred thoracic spines (4800 thoracic pedicles) from individuals of known gender and age were analyzed (in accordance with the order of vertebrae). The spines were divided into six groups according to age and gender. The horizontal and vertical diameters of the thoracic pedicle were determined for each piece. The mean and standard deviation of each variable were determined, and differences between age groups for each gender were evaluated using parametric correlation tests. The pedicle diameters of men and women differed significantly for most groups (P < 0.05). The horizontal diameters decreased from T1 to T5 and increased up to T12. The vertical diameter followed a cephalocaudal pattern of development from T1-T12. The pedicle diameters decreased with increasing age in women, while the opposite trend was observed in men. In men, the dimensions of the thoracic spine pedicle increase with increasing age; in women, they decrease. These differences should be taken into account when selecting the appropriate pedicle screw.
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine, Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León, Monterrey, Nuevo León, México.
authors.forename: Rodolfo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Morales-Avalos
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Leyva-Villegas
authors.forename: Gabriela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sánchez-Mejorada
authors.forename: Marcela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cárdenas-Serna
authors.forename: Félix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vílchez-Cavazos
authors.forename: Angel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martínez-Ponce De León
authors.forename: Guillermo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Elizondo-Riojas
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Martínez-García
authors.forename: Oscar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: De La Garza-Castro
authors.forename: Rodrigo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Elizondo-Omaña
authors.forename: Santos
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Guzmán-López
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D063405:Anatomic Variation; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012737:Sex Factors; D013123:Spinal Fusion / Q000379:methods; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Mexico; age; gender; morphometry; pedicle; spine; thoracic; variation