title: Endovascular aortic injury repair after thoracic pedicle screw placement.
abstract: Our objective was to describe the management and prevention of thoracic aortic injuries caused by a malposition of pedicle screws in corrective surgery of major spine deformities. Positioning pedicle screws in thoracic vertebras by posterior approach exposes to the risk of injury of the elements placed ahead of the thoracic spine, as the descending thoracic aorta. This complication can result in a cataclysmic bleeding, needing urgent vascular care, but it can also be totally asymptomatic, resulting in the long run in a pseudoaneurysm, justifying the systematic removal of the hardware. We report the case of a 76-year-old woman who underwent spinal correction surgery for thoraco-lumbar degenerative kypho-scoliosis. Immediately after the surgery, a thoracic aortic injury caused by the left T7 pedicle screw was diagnosed. The patient underwent a two-step surgery. The first step was realized by vascular surgeons and aimed to secure the aortic wall by short endovascular aortic grafting. During the second step, spine surgeons removed the responsible screw by posterior approach. The patient was discharged in a rehabilitation center 7 days after the second surgery. When such a complication occurs, a co-management by vascular and spine surgeons is necessary to avoid major complications. Endovascular management of this kind of vascular injuries permits to avoid an open surgery that have a great rate of morbi-mortality in frail patients. Nowadays, technologies exist to prevent this kind of event and may improve the security when positioning pedicle screws.
authors.affiliation: Service de neurochirurgie, hôpital de la Timone, 264, rue Saint-Pierre, 13005 Marseille, France. Electronic address: seb.pesenti@gmail.com.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pesenti
authors.affiliation: Service de chirurgie vasculaire, hôpital de la Timone, 264, rue Saint-Pierre, 13005 Marseille, France.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Bartoli
authors.affiliation: Service d'orthopédie, hôpital Nord, 265, chemin des Bourrely, 13015 Marseille, France.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Blondel
authors.affiliation: Service de neurochirurgie, hôpital de la Timone, 264, rue Saint-Pierre, 13005 Marseille, France.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Peltier
authors.affiliation: Service de neurochirurgie, hôpital de la Timone, 264, rue Saint-Pierre, 13005 Marseille, France.
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Adetchessi
authors.affiliation: Service de neurochirurgie, hôpital de la Timone, 264, rue Saint-Pierre, 13005 Marseille, France.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fuentes
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000293:injuries* / Q000601:surgery*; D057510:Endovascular Procedures; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007738:Kyphosis / Q000601:surgery; D065289:Pedicle Screws / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011859:Radiography; D012600:Scoliosis / Q000601:surgery; D015607:Stents; D013904:Thoracic Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery*
keywords: Pedicle screw misplacement; Posterior spinal; Thoracic aortic injury