Modified grade 4 osteotomy for the correction of post-traumatic thoracolumbar kyphosis: A retrospective study of 42 patients

Abstract

Many surgical procedures have been developed for the treatment of post-traumatic thoracolumbar kyphosis. But there is a significant controversy over the ideal management. The aim of this study was to illustrate the technique of modified grade 4 osteotomy for the treatment of post-traumatic thoracolumbar kyphosis and to evaluate clinical and radiographic results of patients treated with this technique.From May 2013 to May 2018, 42 consecutive patients experiencing post-traumatic thoracolumbar kyphosis underwent the technique of modified grade 4 osteotomy, and their medical records were retrospectively collected. Preoperative and postoperative sagittal Cobb angle, visual analog scale (VAS), Oswestry disability index (ODI), and American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) were recorded. The average follow-up period was 29.7±14.2 months.The operation time was 185.5±26.8minutes, the intraoperative blood loss was 545.2±150.1mL. The Cobb angles decreased from 38.5±3.8 degree preoperatively to 4.2±2.6 degree 2 weeks after surgery (P