Surgical stabilization of odontoid fractures improves outcomes
By Admin | June 28, 2023
Odontoid fractures—those occurring in the second cervical vertebra—are common in elderly patients after a low-energy fall. However, whether the initial treatment should be surgical or nonoperative still isn’t known. Previous studies haven’t accounted for differences in injury severity, or the presence or absence of neurologic impairment, which can affect patients’ results.
The article “Surgery Decreases Nonunion, Myelopathy, and Mortality for Patients with Traumatic Odontoid Fractures: A Propensity Score Matched Analysis,” will publish in the September issue of Neurosurgery, the official publication of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, published in the Lippincott portfolio by Wolters Kluwer. The article is published as part of Neurosurgery’s High-Impact Manuscript Service (HIMS).
Michael B. Cloney, MD, MPH, of the Department of Neurological Surgery at Northwestern University in Chicago, and colleagues have published evidence that surgery should be considered as the initial approach for many patients. Compared with nonoperative approaches to treatment, surgical stabilization of the fracture was associated with less myelopathy (mobility impairment due to spinal cord damage), and lower rates of fracture nonunion, 30-day mortality, and one year mortality.
"Given the increasing incidence of odontoid fractures with the aging population, we believe our findings could assist with neurosurgical decision-making for an increasingly common and complex...(More)
For more info please read, Surgical stabilization of odontoid fractures improves outcomes, by EurekAlert
