title: Posterior osteosynthesis of a spontaneous bilateral pedicle fracture of the lumbar spine.
abstract: Spontaneous bilateral pedicle fractures of the lumbar spine are rare, and an optimal surgical treatment has not been suggested. The authors report the case of a 50-year-old woman who presented with low-back pain and right leg radiating pain of 1 year's duration. Radiological studies revealed a spontaneous bilateral pedicle fracture of L-5. All efforts at conservative treatment failed, and the patient underwent surgery for osteosynthesis of the fractured pedicle using bilateral pedicle screws connected with a bent rod. Her low-back and right leg pain were relieved postoperatively. A CT scan performed 3 months postoperatively revealed the disappearance of the pedicle fracture gap and presence of newly formed bony trabeculation. In rare cases of spontaneous bilateral pedicle fracture of the lumbar spine, osteosynthesis of the fractured pedicle using bilateral pedicle screws and a bent rod is a motion-preserving technique that may be an effective option when conservative management has failed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Sang-Hyun
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Seung-Jae
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Hyun
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Tae-Ahn
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Jahng
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Spine Center, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ki-Jeong
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Kim
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D005593:Fracture Fixation, Internal / Q000379:methods*; D005598:Fractures, Spontaneous / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D017116:Low Back Pain / Q000601:surgery; D008159:Lumbar Vertebrae / Q000601:surgery*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010147:Pain Measurement; D011843:Radiculopathy / Q000601:surgery; D016103:Spinal Fractures / Q000601:surgery*; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
keywords: bilateral pedicle fracture; lumbar; motion-preserving technique; osteosynthesis; spontaneous