Effects of durotomy versus myelotomy in the repair of spinal cord injury

Current management for spinal cord injury aims to reduce secondary damage and recover sensation and movement.Acute spinal cord injury is often accompanied by spinal cord compartment syndrome.Decompression by durotomy and/or myelotomy attempts to relieve secondary damage by completelyrelieving the compression of the spinal cord,removing the necrotic tissue,decreasing edema,reducing hemorrhage,and improving blood circulation in the spinal cord.However,it is controversial whether durotomy and/or myelotomy after spinal cord injury are beneficial to neurological recovery.This review compares the clinical effects of durotomy with those of myelotomy in the treatment of spinal cord injury.We found that durotomy has been performed more than myelotomy in the clinic,and that durotomy may be safer and more effective than myelotomy.Durotomy performed in humans had positive effects on neurological function in 92.3% of studies in this review,while durotomy in animals had positive effects on neurological function in 83.3% of studies.Myelotomy procedures were effective in 80% of animal studies,but only one clinical study of myelotomy has reported positive results,of motor and sensory improvement,in humans.However,a number of new animal studies have reported that durotomy and myelotomy are ineffective for spinal cord injury.More clinical data,in the form of a randomized controlled study,are needed to understand the effectiveness of durotomy and myelotomy.

Use of mineralized collagen bone graft substitutes and dorsal locking plate in treatment of elder metaphyseal comminuted distal radius fracture

Bone graft may be needed to fill bone defect in elderly patients with a metaphyseal comminuted distal radius fracture. In this retrospective, nonrandomized, single-surgeon study, we evaluated the clinical and radiologic outcomes of using both dorsal locking plates with or without augmentation with mineralized collagen （MC） bone graft for elderly patients with dorsally metaphyseal comminuted radius fractures. Patients in group 1 （n = 12） were treated with dorsal locking plates with MC bone graft application into the metaphyseal bone defect, and those in group 2 （n - 12） only with dorsal locking plates. Clinical and radiologic parameters were determined at three and 12 months after surgery. At final follow-up, no significant difference was noted between the 2 groups in terms of palmar tilt and radial inclination （p - 0.80）; however, ulnar variance increased significantly in the group 2 treated with dorsal locking plates without augmentation （p〈0.05）. Functionally, there was no significant difference between the groups. Our preliminary study suggests that combination of MC as bone-graft substitutes and dorsal locking plates may be a usefully alternative for elderly patients with metaphyseal comminuted distal radius fracture.

Guideline for diagnosis and treatment of spine trauma in the epidemic of COVID-19

Outbreak of COVID-19 is ongoing all over the world.Spine trauma is one of the most common types of trauma and will probably be encountered during the fight against COVID-19 and resumption of work and production.Patients with unstable spine fractures or continuous deterioration of neurological function require emergency surgery.The COVID-19 epidemic has brought tremendous challenges to the diagnosis and treatment of such patients.To coordinate the diagnosis and treatment of infectious disease prevention and spine trauma so as to formulate a rigorous diagnosis and treatment plan and to reduce the disability and mortality of the disease,multidisciplinary collaboration is needed.This expert consensus is formulated in order to(1)prevent and control the epidemic,(2)diagnose and treat patients with spine trauma reasonably,and(3)reduce the risk of cross-infection between patients and medical personnel during the treatment.