Am I a Candidate?

Compression fractures are often very painful but the majority of them heal over time. Most people with fractures from osteoporosis do well with bed rest, pain medication and occasionally, back bracing. In other patients with osteoporosis or the other causes listed above, the pain from a compression fracture is so severe that this type of treatment is of little help. The pain never fully goes away. Vertebroplasty has been used to successfully treat these patients.

Vertebral compression fractures most often occur in the lower and mid-spine where the vertebrae become brittle as a result of osteoporosis or low bone mass. In rare cases, fractures are caused by tumors or trauma to the spine.

If you have a vertebral compression fracture in either the mid (thoracic) or lower (lumbar) region of your spine, you may be a candidate for vertebroplasty. The procedure is not recommended for patients with fractures in the upper (cervical) spine.

Who is not a candidate for vertebroplasty?

Patients with fractures from severe trauma (automobile accident, falls, etc) are usually not candidates for vertebroplasty. Patients with other types of back problems such as herniated, or "slipped" disc, arthritis of the back, muscle spasms or narrowing of the spinal canal (spinal stenosis) will not be helped by vertebroplasty.

If you are a candidate for vertebroplasty, your physician will ask you to undergo x-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and, in some cases, CT and bone scans. Your physician carefully analyzes the results of these tests to determine if the pain you are experiencing is being caused by a vertebral compression fracture rather than a herniated disk, compressed spine cord or another back disorder.

For more information about vertebroplasty please review how this procedure works.

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