How to treat spinal fractures

The spine is the most important bone tissue in the human body because it bears the weight of the upper body, allowing the upper body to move freely and complete various human movements. The length of the spine is very long, almost the longest bone tissue in the body. This characteristic also determines that the spine is very easy to be injured. Once injured, it is easy to have a greater negative impact on the body. Especially diseases such as spinal fractures are fatal to patients because the hollow structure of the spine contains the spinal cord, which is the largest nerve fiber tissue in the human body and controls the activities of the whole body. Let’s take a look at how to treat spinal fractures?

Treatment of simple compression fractures

(1) The patient can lie on his back on a hard bed with a thick pillow placed on the fracture site to hyperextend the spine. After 3 days, start exercising the waist and back muscles. Initially, move the buttocks left and right, then do back extension to lift the buttocks off the bed. As the back muscle strength increases, the height of the buttocks off the bed increases day by day. After 3 months, the fracture will basically heal. Within the third month, the patient can get out of bed for a little activity, but bed rest is still the main method. After 3 months, gradually increase the time spent on the ground.

(2) Use the two-seat method to supine reduction. After administering analgesics or local anesthesia, use two tables, one about 25-30 cm higher than the other. Place a soft pillow horizontally on the table. The patient lies prone with the head on the side of the high table. Grasp the edge of the table with both hands and place the thighs on the low table. Note that the manubrium of the sternum and the pubic symphysis must be exposed. One assistant holds the patient's armpits on both sides, and the other holds the patient's calves on both sides to prevent the patient from falling. After about 10 minutes of hanging body weight, the patient can be gradually reduced to the original position. The reduction technique is the same as the two-table method. After reduction, a plaster vest is applied to this position. The plastering method, fixing time and tonnage time are approximately the same as before.

2. Treatment of burst fractures: For patients with burst fractures who have no neurological symptoms and whose CT scans confirm that there is no bone fragment squeezed into the spinal canal, double ankle suspension can be used for reduction, because of its large longitudinal traction and relatively safe, but caution is required. For patients with neurological symptoms and fracture fragments squeezed into the spinal canal, reduction is not suitable. For such patients, the protruding fracture fragments and intervertebral disc tissue in the spinal canal should be removed through the lateral anterior approach, and then intervertebral bone grafting and fusion should be performed. If necessary, anterior internal fixation can be inserted. If the posterior column is injured, posterior internal fixation is also required if necessary.

3. Chance fractures, flexion-traction injuries and mobile fracture-dislocation of the spine all require anterior-posterior reduction and internal fixation.