Vertebral body replacement with femoral neck allograft and vascularized rib strut graft. A technique for treating post-traumatic kyphosis with neurologic deficit.

A technique using a vascularized rib pedicle graft and femoral neck allograft is presented as a new method of anterior spine fusion in the treatment of symptomatic post-traumatic kyphosis. The cases of six patients are reviewed who were treated surgically from seven months to 24 years following their initial injury. Substantial neurologic improvement was achieved in four patients with incomplete neurologic deficits when the procedure was combined with an anterior spine decompression. Two patients, one who was neurologically normal and one with complete paraplegia and L-1 pseudarthrosis were relieved of chronic back and radicular pain following this procedure. At the time of followup, complete anterior spine decompression was verified by lateral planography or computerized axial tomography. All patients were found to have solid anterior spine fusions with a 63% mean improvement in preoperative kyphosis. Early and rapid incorporation of bone grafts had been demonstrated, thus requiring shorter external immobilization periods for the patients.