Object Traumatic Grade V thoracolumbar spondylolisthesis, or traumatic spondyloptosis (severe translation injuries), are uncommon spinal injuries. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this article represents the first reported case series of these unique spinal lesions. Methods The authors undertook a retrospective review of a tertiary care regional spinal cord injury patient population treated over a 10-year period (1997–2007). They analyzed data regarding age, sex, mechanism of injury, neurological status, and treatment. Results Five patients were identified (3 men and 2 women) with ages ranging from 17 to 44 years. All patients had sustained high-energy closed spinal injuries: 3 motor vehicle accidents, 1 injured in a building collapse, and 1 hurt by a fallen steel beam. Four patients, all with sagittal-plane spondyloptosis, had a complete neurological deficit (American Spinal Injury Association [ASIA] Grade A), and 1, with coronal-plane spondyloptosis, presented with an incomplete neurological deficit (ASIA Grade C). Four patients had sustained concurrent multisystem trauma. All patients underwent surgery: an isolated posterior fusion in 2 and combined posterior-anterior fusion in 3. Only the patient with an incomplete neurological deficit (coronal-plane spondyloptosis) recovered neurological function postoperatively. Conclusions Traumatic thoracolumbar junction spondyloptosis is rare. Surgical reconstruction and stabilization allow for early mobilization and rehabilitation. In the present series, a patient with coronal-plane spondyloptosis presented with preserved neurological function. This may be due to the result of differences in resultant neurological compression due to displacement mechanics compared with sagittally displaced injuries.

Object Definitions of complications in spinal surgery are not clear. Therefore, the authors assessed a group of practicing spine surgeons and, through the surgeons' responses to an online and emailed survey, developed a simple definition of operative complications due to spinal surgery. To validate this assessment, the authors revised their survey to make it appropriate for a lay audience and repeated the assessment with a cohort of patients who underwent spine surgery. Methods The authors surveyed a cohort of practicing spine surgeons via email and a web-based survey. Surgeons were presented with various complication scenarios and were asked to grade the presence or absence of a complication as well as complication severity, with responses limited to “major complication” and “minor complication/adverse event.” The authors administered a similar assessment, modified for lay persons, to patients in a spinal surgery clinic. Results Complete responses were obtained from 229 surgeons; orthopedic surgeons comprised the majority of respondents (73%). The authors obtained completed surveys from 197 patients. Overall, there was consistent agreement between physicians and patients regarding the presence or absence of a complication in the majority of scenarios (8 [73%] of 11 scenarios with agreement that a complication was present). The overall kappa value, evaluating major versus minor complication, and presence or absence of a complication over the entire cohort, was fair (κ = 0.21). The authors found greater variation between the cohorts when evaluating complication severity. Patients were consistently more critical than physicians in the majority of scenarios in which a difference was evident. In 4 scenarios, patients were more likely than surgeons to deem the scenario a complication and to grade the complication as major versus minor (p < 0.01). In 3 additional scenarios, patients were more likely than physicians to grade a major complication as opposed to minor complication (p < 0.01). In only 1 scenario were patients less likely than physicians to report a complication (p < 0.001). Conclusions Comparing responses of spine surgeons and patients who underwent spinal surgery in assessing a group of common postoperative events, the authors found significant agreement on perception of presence of a complication in the majority of scenarios reviewed. However, patients were consistently more critical than surgeons when differences in reporting were found. The authors' data underscore the importance of reconciling differing opinions regarding complications through open discussions between physicians and patients to ensure accurate patient expectations of planned medical or surgical interventions.

Lifelong learning is essential for the practicing cardiologist. Present lifelong learning mechanisms are stagnant and at risk for not meeting the needs of currently practicing cardiologists. With the increasing burden of cardiovascular disease, growing complexity of patient care, and ongoing pressures of nonclinical responsibilities, educational programming must evolve to meet the demands of the contemporary cardiovascular professional. A paradigm shift, replete with modern and practical educational tools, is needed in the lifelong learning armamentarium. Emerging evidence of novel educational strategies in graduate medical education supports the promise of broader application of these tools to different stages of professional life. In this commentary from the Fellows-in-Training Section Leadership Council, the authors propose 3 novel educational tools-personalized learning, adaptive learning, and the flipped classroom-to improve lifelong learning to meet the educational needs of fellows-in-training to practicing cardiologists alike.

We present a practical binary definition of complications in spine surgery based upon a survey of over 200 practicing spine surgeons. Further work is required in critically assessing spine surgery complications.

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No consensus was found as to timing, frequency, and duration of ESI treatment in lumbar HNP and DDD patients in a survey of practicing spine surgeons. These results illustrate one example of lack of consensus in conservative treatment protocols.

A 36-year-old woman with past medical history of Crohn's disease presented to our hospital with fever and back pain. Initial computed tomography (CT) demonstrated extensive abdominal aortitis. Here, we discuss the very rare association between Crohn's disease and aortitis, in addition to clinical and radiographic follow-up for our patient.