The role of orthosis in spinal injury

Abstract

The management of spinal column fractures, especially when associated with spinal cord injury, was largely ignored until World War II when a spinal injury program at Stoke-Mandeville, England, was started under the direction of Sir Ludwig Guttman. Soldiers and civilians with fractured spines and most with paralysis were treated in an organized fashion commencing with postural reduction. The reduction was maintained by traction in the case of cervical injuries while the patient remained on a turning frame or padded bed until fracture stability or healing was achieved. Thoracic and lumbar fractures were reduced posturally, and the same type frame or bed was utilized until stabilization or healing was obtained (Figs. 5.1 and 5.2). In complex fractures, occasionally cervical-pelvic or cervical-femoral traction was required to achieve reduction (Table 5.1). © 2010 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg.