Tactics of surgical treatment of patients with lumbar spondylolysis

Abstract

The bilateral defect of the pars interarticularis (spondylolysis) is often the cause of low back pain syndrome and can lead to development of spondylolistesis. In some cases inefficiency of conservative treatment of this condition forces orthopedists to use surgical technologies. At the same time, in young patients with intact intervertebral discs, the rigid segmental fixation of the spine should be avoided. Where no neural decompression is needed, selective osteosynthesis of the pars defect is an optimal technique. The authors present the results of surgical treatment of 15 patients with single and two-level lumbar spondylolysis, 4 of which revealed minimal I degree lytic spondylolystesis of the L5 vertebrae. Localization of the pathological process in all patients was noted on both sides. In two patients spondylolysis defects of two vertebrae were detected (in one- adjacent L4 and L5, in the other - L2 and L4 vertebrae with sacralization of L5). The average period from the onset of symptoms ranged from 6 months to 2 years (an average of 14 months). All patients undergone bone autoplasty with iliac crest bone graft, and osteosynthesis of vertebral arches by a combined laminar-transpedicular system of the screw - rod - hook type. All patients had excellent and good anatomic and functional results. The used method of surgical treatment of patients of this category should be considered pathogenetically justified, as it is aimed at repair of spondylolytic defects as the main cause of segmental instability and forward displacement of vertebrae. The possibility to avoid fixation of intact segments of spine allows to categorize this operation as organ-preserving.