TREATMENT OF SCREW LOOSENING IN THE SPINE
Standing
Undergraduate
Type of Proposal
Oral Research Presentation
Challenges Theme
Open Challenge
Faculty Sponsor
N/A
Proposal
Pedicle screws have been used in many surgeries including those treating issues such as spinal fractures, spinal tumors, and degenerative scoliosis, etc. Screw loosening is a post-operative complication of these procedures where the vertebrae do not fuse together and the screw placed begins to cause damage to the patients. This is a complication which has been established as especially problematic and does not currently have a standardized method of treatment. This complication has major consequences for patients and can significantly impeded the quality of their life and health by causing continuous and potentially more severe pain after the operation, nerve compression, or damage the nerve root. In addition, the methods used to diagnose screw loosening in current literature varies as there is not a clear standard, and it is often left up to the discretion of the surgeon. This literature review and case study compares 2 case studies of patients who have been treated at Windsor Regional Hospital with differing methods, in addition to reviewing 13 recent publications involving a multitude of treatments for the loosening of pedicle screws as a post-operative complication of spinal surgery. Some of the treatments evaluated include the use of minimally invasive procedures through the injection of bone cement into the cavity of the loosened screw, removal of the screw and revision of the surgery with different screws or trajectories.
Grand Challenges
Viable, Healthy and Safe Communities
TREATMENT OF SCREW LOOSENING IN THE SPINE
Pedicle screws have been used in many surgeries including those treating issues such as spinal fractures, spinal tumors, and degenerative scoliosis, etc. Screw loosening is a post-operative complication of these procedures where the vertebrae do not fuse together and the screw placed begins to cause damage to the patients. This is a complication which has been established as especially problematic and does not currently have a standardized method of treatment. This complication has major consequences for patients and can significantly impeded the quality of their life and health by causing continuous and potentially more severe pain after the operation, nerve compression, or damage the nerve root. In addition, the methods used to diagnose screw loosening in current literature varies as there is not a clear standard, and it is often left up to the discretion of the surgeon. This literature review and case study compares 2 case studies of patients who have been treated at Windsor Regional Hospital with differing methods, in addition to reviewing 13 recent publications involving a multitude of treatments for the loosening of pedicle screws as a post-operative complication of spinal surgery. Some of the treatments evaluated include the use of minimally invasive procedures through the injection of bone cement into the cavity of the loosened screw, removal of the screw and revision of the surgery with different screws or trajectories.