Percutaneous vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty for painful vertebral body fractures in cancer patients

Object. The current North American experience with minimally invasive vertebro- and kyphoplasty is largely limited to the treatment of benign osteoporotic compression fractures. The objective of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of these procedures for painful vertebral body (VB) fractures in cancer patients. Methods. The authors reviewed a consecutive group of cancer patients (21 with myeloma and 35 with other primary malignancies) undergoing vertebro- and kyphoplasty at their institution. Ninety-seven (65 vertebro- and 32 kyphoplasty) procedures were performed in 56 patients during 58 treatment sessions. The mean patient age was 62 years (± 13 years [standard deviation]) and the median duration of symptoms was 3.2 months. All patients suffered intractable spinal pain secondary to VB fractures. Patients noted marked or complete pain relief after 49 procedures (84%), and no change after five procedures (9%); early postoperative Visual Analog Scale (VAS) pain scores were unavailable in four ...