Lumbar Corpectomy


This pro­ce­dure is per­formed to relieve the pain caused when dis­eased or dam­aged ver­te­brae bone blocks and pinch­es nerve roots. It also cor­rects spinal col­umn defor­mi­ties. Dur­ing this pro­ce­dure, the patient is posi­tioned on his right side. The surgery is per­formed through the patien­t’s left side. After an inci­sion is made, care is tak­en to remove the dis­eased and dam­aged parts of the ver­te­bral bone. This relieves pres­sure from the nerve roots. The discs above and below the affect­ed ver­te­bra are removed along with any dis­eased ver­te­bral frag­ments. The bone sur­faces are cleared and pre­pared to receive a bone graft. Bolts are screwed into the ver­te­brae above and below the gap to help the sur­geon per­form the rest of the pro­ce­dure. The sur­geon opens the ver­te­bral space and cor­rects the spinal col­umn cur­va­ture, this is known as reduc­tion of defor­mi­ty. While the ver­te­bral space is open, the bone graft is insert­ed. Clos­ing the ver­te­bral space secures the bone graft tight­ly into place. A piece of met­al called a Zplate is placed onto the two bolts, bridg­ing the ver­te­brae lev­els above and below the bone graft. Two nuts hold the Zplate in place, and two addi­tion­al screws are insert­ed. The Zplate keeps the area secure while the bone heals. Dur­ing the heal­ing process, the bone graft will knit with the ver­te­brae lev­els above and below to cre­ate one sol­id bone seg­ment, known as a bone fusion.