INTRODUCTION: Several factors are responsible for the late diagnosis of thoracolumbar burst fractures; however, few papers have been published concerning the treatment of these fractures weeks after the original trauma. OBJECTIVE: This is a retrospective study aimed to verify treatment outcomes of patients submitted to arthrodesis and posterior instrumentation three to five weeks after thoracolumbar burst fractures. PATIENTS AND METHOD: From 1980 to 2004, excluding patients with sequelae or recent fractures, 15 cases were identified with a minimum follow-up period of one year. RESULTS: From the clinical viewpoint, 10 patients were asymptomatic and according to the Frankel scale, three of the five patients that presented neurological changes showed improvement (60%). One patient presented superficial infection and sphincter dysfunction. X-ray studies demonstrated kyphosis on fracture site to be the main complication, affecting five patients (33%). There was a mean 3 degree worsening of the kyphosis compared to the values found on early X-ray images. CONCLUSION: We believe, based on a postoperative kyphosis perspective, that subacute thoracolumbar burst fractures should be treated in a specific manner.
Spine fractures; Spinal cord injuries; Wounds; injuries
