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Benefits
of Vertebroplasty to Kyphoplasty
Each year over 750,000 Americans sustain painful life threatening vertebral
compression fractures due to osteoporosis(1) or
metastatic
disease, which lead to severe pain, deformity and loss of height.
Percutaneous vertebroplasty relieves pain and enables patients
to regain independence when conservative care or major spine surgery are
not a viable treatment options. Patients undergoing this minimally invasive
procedure experience 90% or greater reduction in pain in as little as 24
hours(2, 3,6).
Significant benefits include:
- Durable long-term pain relief, lasting 12-35 months after post-procedure(5,
6)
- An increased ability to perform activities of daily living(3,
4)
- Rare incidence of complications vs. kyphoplasty where there has been a disproportionate increase in reported deaths nationally associated with the procedure in the last three years.(6, 8)
Percutaneous vertebroplasty has been performed in the United States since
the mid 1990s(4,7).
The procedure is relatively quick and simple to complete; under fluoroscopic
imaging, biocompatible bone cement is placed into a fractured vertebral
body.
The fracture is stabilized, providing pain relief and increased
independence. Percutaneous vertebroplasty is:
- Covered by Medicare as well as most private insurance plans
- Performed on an outpatient basis (7)
- Significantly less expensive than balloon
kyphoplasty and does not require general anesthesia or hospital
admission (lessens adverse impact to patient and facility).(7)
Specialists performing percutaneous vertebroplasty include: interventional
radiologists and neuro-radiologists, pain management physicians, and spine
surgeons.
References
| 1. |
National Osteoporosis Foundation fast facts
page. National Osteoporosis Foundation Web site. Available at http://www.nof.org/osteoporosis/diseasefacts.htm.
Accessed March 21, 2005. |
| 2. |
Diamond TH, Champion B, Clark WA. Management
of acute osteoporotic vertebral fractures: a nonrandomized trial comparing
percutaneous vertebroplasty with conservative therapy. Am J Med. 2003;114:257-265. |
| 3. |
McGraw JK, Lippert JA, Minkus KD, Rami
PM, Davis TM, Budzik RF. Prospective evaluation of pain relief in
100 patients undergoing percutaneous vertebroplasty: results and follow-up.
J Vasc Interv Radiol. 2002;13:883-886. |
| 4. |
Evans AJ, Jensen ME, Kip KE, et al. Vertebral
compression fractures: pain reduction and improvement in functional
mobility after percutaneous polymethylmetacrylate vertebroplasty—retrospective
report of 245 cases. Radiology. 2003;226:366-372. |
| 5. |
Legroux-Gerot I, Lormeau C, Boutry N, Cotten
A, Duquesnoy B, Cortet B. Long-term follow-up of vertebral osteoporotic
fractures treated by percutaneous vertebroplasty. Clin Rheumatol.
2004;23:310-317. |
| 6. |
Zoarski GH, Snow P, Olan WJ, et al. Percutaneous
vertebroplasty for osteoporotic compression fractures: quantitative
prospective evaluation of long-term outcomes. J Vasc Interv Radiol.
2002;13:139-148. |
| 7. |
Do HM. Percutaneous vertebroplasty. Dis
Manage Dig. 2004;8:2-4 |
| 8. |
The Plain Dealer, December 10, 2006 |
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