Objective To study the indications, technical nuances, learning curve, and outcomes associated with minimally invasive tubular discectomy of spine (MITDS) and minimally invasive tubular decompression (MITD) using the tubular retractor system and compare the outcomes with open microdiscectomy and open decompression. Materials and Methods All patients who underwent MITDS and MITD received a trial of conservative management for 6 weeks prior to surgery. Patients who had undergone open microdiscectomy and open decompression during the same period were used as controls. Operating time, intraoperative blood loss, preop and postop visual analogue scale (VAS) scores, preop and postop Oswestry disability index (ODI) scores, duration of hospital stay, complications, and need for redo surgery were analyzed. Results Thirty-two patients who underwent MITDS and 8 patients who underwent MITD were compared with an equal number of patients who underwent open microdiscectomy and open decompression, respectively. MITDS and MITD were associated with shorter hospital stay. Short-term pain outcome was better in MITDS and MITD group, although it was not statistically significant in MITD group. Functional outcome measured in terms of ODI at 6 months was not statistically significant between minimally invasive and open procedures. Conclusion Both MITDS and MITD have a significant learning curve and have a distinct advantage of shorter hospital stay. MITDS has the distinct advantage of better short-term pain relief compared with open procedures. For MITD, comparison of short-term pain relief requires a larger sample size. To establish long-term advantages of MITDS and MITD, larger sample size and long-term follow-up are needed.
The natural healing of spinal tuberculosis occurs by spontaneous fusion of vertebral bodies with or without kyphotic deformity. Late-onset paraplegia secondary to the fracture of fusion mass in tuberculosis is one of the rare conditions which have not been extensively reported. A 56-year-old male patient sustained road traffic accident was diagnosed with a fracture of fusion mass in already healed tuberculosis. He was presented with weakness in both the lower limbs with ASIA-C grading of spinal cord injury. He was treated with posterior instrumented stabilization and decompression. The patient recovered well postoperatively and had regained his complete power of both lower limbs. Late-onset paraplegia in old healed spinal tuberculosis is a well-known entity that may be caused due to transaction of the cord by a bony ridge or when the formed granulation or fibrous tissue constricts the cord. Fusion mass fractures are not very uncommon in conditions such as ankylosing spondylitis or diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis. Traumatic fractures tend to occur at the adjacent vertebral bodies to the fused ones as the biomechanical stress at the junctional site is far higher than at the center of the fused mass. In healed spinal tuberculosis, resultant deformity would be kyphosis. The angle of kyphosis is directly proportional to the resulting neurological deficit. Fractures of fused mass in healed tuberculosis are similar to the fractures in other ossifying bone lesions. The purpose of this article is to document the rare possibility of late-onset paraplegia in uninstrumented old healed spinal tuberculosis with kyphotic deformity, due to the fracture of fusion mass as seen in ankylosing spondylitis.
Positional complications in spine surgery are not uncommon. Commonly encountered complications include ocular and aural, other than musculoskeletal injuries. However, development of Tietze's syndrome due to malpositioning has not been reported till date. A 40-year-old male patient presented with postlaminectomy syndrome, for which posterior pedicle screw fixation and fusion was performed. Postoperatively, patient complained of new-onset pain associated with redness and swelling at parasternal region. After thorough radiological investigations, he was diagnosed with Tietze's syndrome at 6th and 7th costo-cartilaginous junction. Tietze's syndrome is itself a rare entity, and its association with malpositioning during prone positioning is uncommon. It is important for the surgeons to be aware of the condition as Tietze's syndrome may be encountered as an off-centered complication due to malpositioning.
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