Morphometric Measurements of Cadaveric Thoracic Spine in Indian Population and Its Clinical Applications

Abstract

Study DesignAnalysis of morphometric data obtained from direct measurements of 100 cadaveric thoracic spines in Indian population.PurposeTo collect a base line morphometric data and analyze it in reference to the musculoskeletal anatomy and biomechanics of the spine; implants and instrumentations; and to suggest the requisite modification in spinal surgery instrumentations.Overview of LiteratureMost of the previous studies in the world literature have focused primarily on the parameters of the pedicle and to the authors' knowledge; no study has been published from the Indian subcontinent reporting a detailed morphometry of the thoracic spine.MethodsOne thousand and two hundred thoracic vertebrae were studied by direct measurements for linear and angular dimensions of the vertebral body, spinal canal, pedicle, and spinous and transverse processes in 100 human cadavers.ResultsThirty-five point five percent of all the pedicles; 71% of T5 pedicles; 54.6% of all the female pedicles; and 94.4% of the T5 pedicles in females were smaller than 5 mm in mid-pedicle width dimension. Transverse pedicle angle was more at all levels and pedicles were sagittaly angulated in cephalad direction in comparison to other studies. Minimum value of interpedicular distance was at T5 (15.48 ± 1.24). Vertebral body width showed slight decrease from T1 to T4. The transverse process length was relatively constant between T2 to T10. The spinous process angle showed increasing trend from T1 to T6 and then gradually decreased to T12.ConclusionsMost of the trends in changes of the parameters from T1 to T12 can be explained on the basis of local musculoskeletal anatomy and biomechanical stresses. The smallest diameter screw and shortest available screw for adults may not be safe in majority of the Indian population in mid-thoracic region. The results of the present study can help in designing implants and instrumentations; understanding spine pathologies; and management of spinal disorders in this part of the world.

A Morphometric Study of Dry Human Typical Thoracic Vertebral Body in Telangana Region.

“…The differences in the results of the present study and those of the previous studies with respect to some of the parameters may be due to differences in race, ethnicity, environmental factors as well as methods used for the studies. These findings strengthen the recommendations by Roop Singh et al (8) for modification in spinal surgery instrumentations in accordance with the morphometric data obtained from Indian population.…”

“…Many authors have studied the vertebrae using different methods such as plain radiographs, direct specimen measurements and quantitative 3dimensional anatomic techniques. These include Panjabi MM et a (6) , Tan et a (7) , Roop Singh et a (8) , Gupta R et al (9) , Kunkel ME et al (10) and Patil Dhaval K. et al (12) . However, Berry JL et al (11) studied only second and seventh thoracic vertebrae.…”

Age‐ and gender‐related variations in morphometric characteristics of thoracic spine pedicle

“…The horizontal diameters are the most commonly studied variables in morphometric studies of the vertebral pedicle. The average values of the different horizontal diameters (outer pedicle width) are consistent with those of other populations with respect to the patterns of behavior and the general morphometric characteristics of the thoracic spine pedicle (Zindrick et al, 1987;Islam et al, 1994;McCormack et al, 1995;Vaccaro et al, 1995a,b;Islam et al, 1996;Ebraheim et al, 1997;Ugur et al, 2001;Datir and Mitra, 2004;Christodolou et al, 2005;Nojiri et al, 2005;;Catan et al, 2007;Jun-Hak et al, 2009;Yong et al, 2009;Chen et al, 2010;Acharya et al, 2011;Singh et al, 2011;Zhuang et al, 2011Zhuang et al, , 2012Cui et al, 2012).…”

Single Screw-Rod Anterior Instrumentation for Thoracolumbar Burst Fractures with Incomplete Neurological Deficit

“…Other studies also noted significant differences in anatomic parameters between Caucasian and Asian spines and recommended modifying spinal instrumentation accordingly. [33][34][35] In a study comparing single versus double screwrod anterior instrumentation for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, pseudoarthrosis occurred more frequently in the single screw-rod group (5/90 vs. 0/60, p>0.05), although deformity correction rates were similar. 36 In the current study, only a subgroup of burst fractures (i.e.…”