Percutaneous vertebroplasty.

Percutaneous vertebroplasty (PV) is a safe and effective treatment for relieving pain in patients complaining of severe back pain induced by osteoporotic or neoplastic compression fractures. The success rate exceeds 90% and the complication rate is lower than 1%. Most of the complications are transient. The classic indication for PV is severe, persistent, and incapacitating focal back pain not responding to standard medical therapy and related to one or more collapsed vertebral bodies of 4 to 12 weeks duration.