Percutaneous iliac screw placement: description of a new minimally invasive technique

Minimally invasive spinal instrumentation techniques have evolved tremendously over the past decade. Although there have been numerous reports of lumbar instrumentation performed via a percutaneous or minimal incisional route, to date there have been no reports of minimally invasive iliac screw placement. A method was developed for accurate placement of minimally invasive iliac screw placement based on a modification of currently available percutaneous lumbar instrumentation techniques. The method involves fluoroscopically guided insertion of a cannula-based screw system, and this technique was successful applied to treat an L-5 burst fracture with L-4 to iliac spinal stabilization via a minimally invasive approach. This report demonstrates the feasibility of percutaneous iliac screw instrumentation. However, future studies will be needed to validate the safety and efficacy of this approach.