Fusion Revision Surgery With Reamer-Irrigator-Aspirator to Harvest Autograft After Spinal Pseudarthrosis

. 2022 Jul 31;14(7):e27503.


doi: 10.7759/cureus.27503.


eCollection 2022 Jul.

Affiliations

Item in Clipboard

Ahmed H Elhessy et al.


Cureus.


.

Abstract

Background and purpose Spinal pseudarthrosis (SPA) is a common complication after attempted cervical or lumbosacral spinal fusion surgery. Revision surgeries usually necessitate bone graft implementation as an adjunct to hardware revision. Iliac crest bone graft is the gold standard but availability can be limited and usage often leads to persistent postoperative pain at the donor site. There is scant literature regarding the use of reamer-irrigator-aspirator (RIA)-harvested bone graft in lumbar spinal fusion. This is a collaborative study between orthopedic surgery and neurosurgery departments to utilize femur intramedullary autograft harvested using the RIA system as an adjunct graft in SPA revision surgeries. Materials and methods A retrospective review was conducted at a single center between August 2014 and December 2017 of patients aged ≥ 18 years and diagnosed with cervical, thoracic, or lumbar SPA who underwent revision fusion surgery using femur intramedullary autograft harvested using the RIA system. Plain radiographs and CT scans were utilized to confirm successful fusion. Results Eleven patients underwent 12 SPA revision surgeries using the RIA system as a source for bone graft in addition to bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2) and allograft. The mean amount of graft harvested was 51.3 mL (range: 20-70 mL). Nine patients achieved successful fusion (81.8%). The average time to fusion was 9.1 months. Four patients (36.4%) had postoperative knee pain. Regarding patient position and approach for harvesting, 66.7% (n = 8) of cases were positioned prone and a retrograde approach was utilized in 91.7% (n = 11) of cases. Interpretation This is the first case series in known literature to report the RIA system as a reliably considerable source of autologous bone graft for SPA revision surgeries. It provides a useful adjunct to the known types of bone grafts. Patient positioning and the approach choice for graft harvesting can be adjusted according to the fusion approach and the surgeon’s preference.


Keywords:

autograft; pseudarthrosis; reamer irrigator aspirator; ria; spine fusion.

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared financial relationships, which are detailed in the next section.

Figures


Figure 1



Figure 1. Broken hardware

(A) Anteroposterior and (B) lateral preoperative radiographs showing broken hardware with failed fusion.


Figure 2



Figure 2. Collecting graft

The intraoperative retrograde approach in the prone position (A). The reamer-irrigator-aspirator (RIA) system with the bone graft being collected (B).


Figure 3



Figure 3. Patient #8

(A) Sagittal and (B) axial views of preoperative CT scan compared with (C) sagittal and (D) axial views of six-month postoperative CT scan.


Figure 4



Figure 4. Patient #6

(A) Anteroposterior and (B) lateral preoperative cervical X-rays. (C) Anteroposterior and (D) lateral postoperative cervical X-rays.


Figure 5



Figure 5. Patient #6

Sagittal (A) and axial (B) cervical CT scans showing successful fusion.

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