Vertebral body reconstruction: techniques and tools

Vertebral augmentation techniques use image guidance for the percutaneous placement of spinal implants that stabilize a painful osteoporotic or pathologic vertebral compression fracture. The initial implant, acrylic bone cement, was injected through a bone needle into the vertebral body, a procedure referred to as vertebroplasty. A modification of this procedure, kyphoplasty, entails the temporary use of an inflatable balloon tamp before cement injection. Other techniques and the equipment required to perform these vertebral augmentation procedures have evolved significantly during the past two decades. It is now possible to perform vertebral body reconstruction in patients with painful fractures of compromised vertebrae with excellent outcomes in terms of sustainable pain relief and marked reduction in patient morbidity.