Turkish Neurosurgery 1998 , Vol 8 , Num 1-2
A NEW SPINAL STABILIZATION SYSTEM: INTERCORPORAL FIXATION DEVICE FOR THORACOLUMBAR STABILIZATION
Cengiz S.TÜRKMEN1, İbrahim M. ZİYAL1, Alper R. KAYA1, Osman TÜRKMENOĞLU1, Yunus AYDIN1, Ilgaz DOĞUSOY2, Kaya ÖZKUŞ3, Ahmet ÜNAL4, Muzaffer BAŞAK5
1Sisli Etfal Hospital Department of Neurosurgery, İstanbul, Turkey
2Siyami Ersek Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Center Department of Thoracic Surgery, İstanbul, Turkey
3İstanbul University Cerrahpaşa Medical Faculty Department of Anatomy, İstanbul, Turkey
4Yildiz Technical University Department of Metallurgical Engineering, İstanbul, Turkey
5 Sisli Etfal Hospital Department of Radiology, İstanbul, Turkey
Anterior intercorporal fixation, different from the currently used techniques, was tested as a new stabilization system first in human cadaver and then was applied to a patient. Our device is a two directional screw system applied with anterolateral approach to the superior and inferior corpus end plates along the vertical axis of columna vertebralis. This system which is composed of two screws with their fixing washers preventing rotational movement, and a connector was tested in human cadavers following animal trials. Its advantage over the other devices stems from its positioning into the corpus, the center of axial compressional loads, in the same direction as the force vector. This has been verified by means of biomechanical experiments and was applied then to a patient with Ll burst fracture. It is suggested that anterior ıntercorporal fixation with our device is suitable for routine clinical use due to its higher strength, simplicity and practicality in applications as compared to the other systems. Keywords : Anterior instrumentation, intercorporal fixation, stabilization, thoraco-lumbar
Corresponding author : Cengiz S. Türkmen