Nonunion of osteoporotic vertebral compression fracture with a severe spinal stenosis treated in minimally invasive manner: a case report

Compared with numerous encouraging reports of percutaneous kyphoplasty (PKP) in treatment of painful osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures, there have been fewer reports on the role of PKP in the treatment of nonunion of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures. Even less is known about the use of PKP in treating nonunion of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures with severe spinal stenosis. We reported an 87-year-old man presented with half a year back pain and numbness of both legs after back sprain 6 months ago. Nonunion of L3 with severe spinal stenosis was recognized in the preoperative films. Bone mineral analysis showed severe osteoporosis with a T-score of −4.7. He refused to receive the decompression surgery. As a result, PKP was introduced to him as an alternative option. The patient experienced complete pain relief after PKP without any complication. Meanwhile, it was an interesting finding that numbness of both legs disappeared. After 12 months follow-up, the patient was asymptomatic. This case illustrated that PKP could be considered as one of the options for nonunion of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures with severe spinal stenosis.