Hobson, Sandra L.

BACKGROUND Iatrogenic aortic injury from pedicle screw malpositioning or anterior prominence in posterior spinal fusion represents a rare but potentially devasting complication. While intraoperative aortic injury is associated with hemodynamic instability, delayed presentations of pedicle screw aortic impingement or violation often present insidiously with pseudoaneurysm or vascular remodeling in clinically asymptomatic patients. Currently, there is a lack of guidance in the field for the recommended surveillance, urgency of operative intervention, and optimal surgical management of delayed pedicle screw aortic injuries. OBSERVATIONS The following case study discusses the open treatment of delayed thoracic aortic penetration from an excessively long T12 pedicle screw in an asymptomatic adolescent patient with idiopathic scoliosis. The pedicle screw prominence anteriorly was corrected by burring the screw tip until it was flush with the vertebral body. The associated aortic injury was addressed with open vascular repair via primary anastomosis supplemented with a bovine pericardial patch. LESSONS Complete aortic wall penetration from an excessively long thoracic pedicle screw with otherwise stable screw positioning may be addressed most effectively with a single anterior surgical approach for open aortic repair and screw tip burring.

Case: A 71-year-old woman sustained C1 lateral mass and type 2 odontoid fractures 3 years after C2-T2 anterior-posterior fusion. She was treated with C1-C4 instrumentation without fusion for 9 months followed by instrumentation removal to restore atlantoaxial motion. After instrumentation removal, she maintained clinically relevant cervical lateral bending, rotation, and flexion and extension. Conclusion: The loss of upper cervical motion after C1-C2 instrumented fusion may be debilitating for patients in the setting of previous subaxial cervical fusion. Temporary instrumentation without fusion may allow for preservation of upper cervical motion in patients with concomitant C1 and C2 fractures above a previous cervical fusion.