Minimally Invasive Approaches to Vertebral Fractures and Osteolytic Lesions of the Spine

Percutaneous vertebroplasty, percutaneous balloon kyphoplasty, radiofrequency kyphoplasty, and mechanical vertebral augmentation are interventional techniques involving the fluoroscopically guided injection of polymethyl methacrylate into a weakened vertebral body or a cavity created in the vertebral body with a balloon or mechanical device. The techniques have been investigated to provide mechanical support and symptomatic relief in patients with osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures or those with osteolytic lesions of the spine (eg, multiple myeloma, metastatic malignancies); as a treatment for sacral insufficiency fractures; and as a technique to limit blood loss related to surgery.