Epidemiology of Vertebral Fractures in Chile: A retrospective study in the largest neurosurgery reference center of the country

Abstract

Study Design: Retrospective cohort study. Objectives: This study aims to describe the occurrence of vertebral fractures according to age, sex, cause, type of fracture, compromised level, treatment, and complications in adult individuals. Setting: A Chilean neurosurgery reference center. Methods: All patients ≥ 18 years old suffering from an acute vertebral fracture between 2017 and 2022 were included in this study. Demographical data, fracture characteristics and management were obtained from medical records. Results: In total, 175 individuals with vertebral fractures were identified. The highest percentages of vertebral fractures were concentrated in 2 periods of life: under 30 years of age (25.7%, N=45), and ≥ 65 years (30.9%, N=54). Mostly of these patients were men (56.6%). Over 90 percent of individuals had a traumatic vertebral fracture (90.2%), whereas 9.8% had a pathological vertebral fracture. The most frequent localization was in the Thoracolumbar region of the spine (58.3%), being the Burst fractures (A3 or A4) the most frequent types (47.4%). Sixty-two patients had a neurological deficit (35.4%), mostly paraparesis. Finally, spinal fusion, with or without decompression, was the most used surgical technique (52.1%), with almost 13% of complications, mainly due to surgical site infections. Conclusions: Worldwide distribution of data regarding characterization of vertebral fractures is heterogeneous, even in our own region. However, data on the subject in Latin America is scarce. Understanding the clinical and demographic characteristics of these patients will help to prevent injuries, deciding type of management, and aiming to reduce complications in cases of traumatic and non-traumatic spine injuries.