The retropleural approach provides the shortest direct route to the ventral thoracic and thoracolumbar spine while avoiding entry into the pleural cavity. 1 The retropleural corridor maintains the visceral pleura…
Introduction and Patient Selection Transpedicular screw fixation is commonly used as a means to treat spinal instability resulting from traumatic, neoplastic, congenital, or degenerative processes. Several techniques are used to…
Posterior segmental fixation of the cervical spine has been widely performed for a number of years. Posterior segmental fixation reduces the need for external orthosis, which may allow for earlier…
Spondylolisthesis is defined as a forward slippage of the vertebral body together with its pedicles, transverse processes, and upper articular processes caused by a break in the continuity or an…
Lumbar disk arthroplasty uses spinal motion preservation technology for the treatment of degenerative disk disease. Implant design considerations include re-creation of near-normal physiological spinal segment motion by reproducing rotation, translation,…
Penetrating injuries to the spinal cord rank as the third leading cause of spinal cord injuries (SCIs), after motor-vehicle accidents and falls. Penetrating injuries account for almost 15% of new…
The spinal canal is anatomically narrowest at the thoracic level. Small lesions anterior and lateral to the spinal cord in this region tend to manifest with overt pain and neurologic…
Thoracic disk herniation (TDH) is a common spinal disorder, with an estimated radiographic prevalence of 11% to 37%. 1, 2, 3 Clinically symptomatic TDH is rare, however, occurring in as…
Patient Selection 6.1.1 Pathophysiology Atlantoaxial instability (AAI) or atlantoaxial subluxation (AAS) is characterized by excessive motion at the junction between the atlas (C1) and axis (C2) owing to either a bony…
The far lateral approach and its variants consist of an inferior lateral suboccipital craniotomy, partial condyle resection, and C1 hemilaminectomy ( ▶ Fig. 3.1). The exposure provides an oblique and…
