Osteotomies including pedicle subtraction (PSO) and/or Smith-Peterson (SPO) are used to facilitate surgical correction of adult spinal deformity (ASD), but are associated with complications including instrumentation failure and rod fracture (RF). The purpose of this study was to determine incidence and risk factors for RF, including a clinically significant subset (CSRF), after osteotomy for ASD. A retrospective review of clinical records was conducted on consecutive ASD patients treated with posterolateral instrumented fusion and osteotomy. Seventy-five patients (50 female; average age, 59) met strict inclusion/exclusion criteria and follow-up of ≥1 year. Data was extracted pertaining to the following variables: patient demographics; details of surgical intervention; instrumentation; and postoperative outcomes. Patients were divided into two subgroups: 1) rod fracture (RF) and 2) non-RF. The RF subgroup was further divided into CSRF and non-CSRF. Odds ratios (OR) were calculated to evaluate the association between risk factors and RF. The χ2-test was used to define P-values for categorical variables, and T-test was applied for continuous variables, P-values ≤0.05 were considered significant. Incidence rates of RF were: for entire population, 9.3 % (95 % Cl: 2.7 %; 15.9 %); for PSO, 16.2 % (95 % Cl: 4.3; 28.1); and for SPO, 2.6 % (95 % Cl: 0 %; 7.7 %); the OR of PSO versus SPO was 7.2 (95 % Cl: 0.8; 62.7, P = 0.1). CSRF incidence was 5.3 % (95 % CI: 0.2 %; 10.4 %). Significant risk of RF was revealed for following factors: fusion construct crossing both thoracolumbar and lumbosacral junctions (OR = 9.1, P = 0.05), sagittal rod contour >60° (OR = 10.0, P = 0.04); the presence of dominos and/or parallel connectors at date of rod fracture (OR = 10.0, P = 0.01); and pseudarthrosis at ≥1 year follow-up (OR = 28.9, P < 0.001). Statistically significant risk of CSRF was revealed for fusion to pelvis (P = 0.05) and pseudarthrosis at ≥1 year follow-up (OR = 50.3, CI: 4.2; 598.8, P < 0.01). The risk of RF after posterolateral instrumented correction of ASD with osteotomy had statistically significant association with the following factors: pseudarthrosis at ≥1 year follow-up; sagittal rod contour >60°; presence of dominos and/or parallel connectors at date of fracture; and fusion construct crossing both thoracolumbar and lumbosacral junctions. Statistically significant risk for the CSRF subset was fusion to the pelvis and pseudarthrosis at ≥1 year follow-up.

Chronic low back pain can be caused by impaired control and degeneration of the multifidus muscles and consequent functional instability of the lumbar spine. Available treatment options have limited effectiveness and prognosis is unfavorable. We conducted an international randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled trial at 26 multidisciplinary centers to determine safety and efficacy of an implantable, restorative neurostimulator designed to restore multifidus neuromuscular control and facilitate relief of symptoms (clinicaltrials.gov identifier: NCT02577354). Two hundred four eligible participants with refractory mechanical (musculoskeletal) chronic LBP and a positive prone instability test indicating impaired multifidus control were implanted and randomized to therapeutic (N = 102) or low-level sham (N = 102) stimulation of the medial branch of the dorsal ramus nerve (multifidus nerve supply) for 30 minutes twice daily. The primary endpoint was the comparison of responder proportions (≥30% relief on the LBP visual analogue scale without analgesics increase) at 120 days. After the primary endpoint assessment, participants in the sham-control group switched to therapeutic stimulation and the combined cohort was assessed through 1 year for long-term outcomes and adverse events. The primary endpoint was inconclusive in terms of treatment superiority (57.1% vs 46.6%; difference: 10.4%; 95% confidence interval, −3.3% to 24.1%, P = 0.138). Prespecified secondary outcomes and analyses were consistent with a modest but clinically meaningful treatment benefit at 120 days. Improvements from baseline, which continued to accrue in all outcome measures after conclusion of the double-blind phase, were clinically important at 1 year. The incidence of serious procedure- or device-related adverse events (3.9%) compared favorably with other neuromodulation therapies for chronic pain.

➤ Symptoms that suggest that the sacroiliac joint (SIJ), as opposed to pathology of the lumbar spine or hip, may be a source of pain include pain with position changes, such as standing from a seated position or sitting on a hard surface. Radiation to the groin or Fortin area also suggest sacroiliac joint as a source. ➤ A constellation of findings, including pain referral patterns, provocative maneuvers, and response to injections, should be utilized when assessing SIJ pathology. ➤ While its effectiveness remains unsubstantiated, manipulation of the SIJ is noninvasive and warrants consideration as an initial treatment modality. ➤ The diagnostic validity of local anesthetic and/or corticosteroid injections is difficult to assess as the criteria for a positive response are not uniform in the literature, and evidence to support intra-articular injections for therapeutic purposes is weak. ➤ SIJ fusion appears to be emerging as an acceptable treatment for patients with recalcitrant SIJ dysfunction; however, only a few long-term outcome studies have been done. ➤ New minimally invasive fusion techniques appear to decrease the morbidity of open procedures with at least comparable outcomes.

Various navigation systems are available to aid pedicle screw placement. The O-arm replaces the need for fluoroscopy and generates a 3-dimensional volumetric dataset that can be viewed as transverse, coronal, and sagittal images of the spine, similar to computed tomography (CT) scanning. The dataset can be downloaded to the Stealth system (Medtronic Navigation, Louisville, Colorado) for real-time intraoperative navigation. The main objectives of the current study were to assess (1) accuracy of pedicle screw placement using the O-arm/Stealth system, and (2) time for draping, positioning of the O-arm, and screw placement. Of 188 screws (25 patients), 116 had adequate images for analysis. The average time for O-arm draping was 3.5 minutes. Initial O-arm positioning was 6.1 minutes, and final positioning was 4.9 minutes. Mean time for screw placement, including O-arm draping and positioning and array attachment, was 8.1 minutes per screw. Mean time for screw placement alone was 5.9 minutes per screw. Screw placements on final O-arm images were on average 3.14 mm deeper than on the snapshot navigation images. Three screws (2.6%) breached the medial cortex, and 3 screws (2.6%) were misaligned and did not follow the pilot hole trajectory. The use of the O-arm/Stealth system was associated with a low rate of pedicle screw misalignment. The time to place screws was less than previously reported with CT navigation, but longer than conventional techniques. It is important to be aware of the potential discrepancy between snapshot navigation images and actual screw placement on final O-arm images. Our findings suggest that final screw positions may be deeper than awl positions appear on navigation images.

A prospective, randomized study was performed in an ovine model to compare the efficacy of an anorganic bovine-derived hydroxyapatite matrix combined with a synthetic 15 amino acid residue (ABM/P-15) in facilitating lumbar interbody fusion when compared with autogenous bone harvested from the iliac crest. P-15 is a biomimetic to the cell-binding site of Type-I collagen for bone-forming cells. When combined with ABM, it creates the necessary scaffold to initiate cell invasion, binding, and subsequent osteogenesis. In this study, six adult ewes underwent anterior-lateral interbody fusion at L3/L4 and L4/L5 using PEEK interbody rings filled with autogenous bone at one level and ABM/P-15 at the other level and no additional instrumentation. Clinical CT scans were obtained at 3 and 6 months; micro-CT scans and histomorphometry analyses were performed after euthanization at 6 months. Clinical CT scan analysis showed that all autograft and ABM/P-15 treated levels had radiographically fused outside of the rings at the 3-month study time point. Although the clinical CT scans of the autograft treatment group showed significantly better fusion within the PEEK rings than ABM/P-15 at 3 months, micro-CT scans, clinical CT scans, and histomorphometric analyses showed there were no statistical differences between the two treatment groups at 6 months. Thus, ABM/P-15 was as successful as autogenous bone graft in producing lumbar spinal fusion in an ovine model, and it should be further evaluated in clinical studies.

Wrong site surgery is one of five surgical "Never Events," which include performing surgery on the incorrect side or incorrect site, performing the wrong procedure, performing surgery on the wrong patient, unintended retention of a foreign object in a patient, and intraoperative/immediate postoperative death in an ASA Class I patient. In the spine, wrong site surgery occurs when a procedure is performed on an unintended vertebral level. Despite the efforts of national safety protocols, literature suggests that the risk for wrong level spine surgery remains problematic.