Balloon kyphoplasty for vertebra plana with or without osteonecrosis.

PURPOSE To compare efficacy of balloon kyphoplasty in restoring vertebral height and correcting kyphosis in patients having vertebra plana with or without osteonecrosis. METHODS 12 women and 3 men (mean age, 76 years), who had a complete vertebra plana with or without osteonecrosis (n=8 vs n=7), underwent balloon kyphoplasty. No external manoeuvres were performed before or during balloon kyphoplasty, except for positioning the patients in a prone posture on the operating table. The anterior, middle, and posterior vertebral height and the kyphotic angle were measured pre- and post-operatively with a digital imaging system. The vertebral height was measured as a percentage of the adjacent normal vertebral height. RESULTS Respectively in vertebra plana patients with or without osteonecrosis, the mean corrections of (1) kyphosis were 10 and 4 degrees (p=0.099), (2) anterior vertebral height were 33% and 5% (p<0.001), (3) middle vertebral height were 38% and 18% (p=0.004), and (4) posterior vertebral height were 19% and 2% (p=0.031). CONCLUSION In patients with vertebra plana, it is important to identify any osteonecrosis, which is an indication for balloon kyphoplasty to restore vertebral height and correct kyphosis.