A compression fracture or a break in one of your vertebra can be painful. It can also make it difficult to move freely. That’s because a break can cause bone fragments to rub against each other. Fortunately, there are a few surgical procedures that may help.
Kyphoplasty and vertebroplasty are minimally invasive procedures that are often performed together. Usually, they can be done without a hospital stay. In vertebroplasty, a doctor injects a cement mixture into the bone to give it strength. Kyphoplasty makes room for the mixture. In this procedure, a doctor inserts and inflates a balloon to create an opening for the mixture. The balloon is removed after the cement is injected. Kyphoplasty is sometimes referred to as balloon vertebroplasty.
The goals of a kyphoplasty surgical procedure are designed to stop the pain caused by a spinal fracture, to stabilize the bone, and to restore some or all of the lost vertebral body height due to the compression fracture.
Kyphon Balloon Kyphoplasty can reduce or eliminate your back pain from a spinal fracture, as well as restore vertebral body height and proper alignment of your spine. Early and effective treatment (fixing the broken bone) may reduce the consequences of spinal fractures, especially those associated with other treatments, for example, prolonged bed rest or use of analgesics.
Other benefits include sustained improvement in mobility, improvement in ability to perform activities of daily living, and improved quality of life. Although the complication rate with Kyphon Balloon Kyphoplasty has been demonstrated to be low, as with most surgical procedures there are risks associated with the procedure, including serious complications. This procedure is not for everyone. A prescription is required.
Description of Kyphoplasty Surgery

A typical Kyphoplasty procedure is performed as follows:

• The patient is lying prone (on his/her belly) on the operating table, either completely asleep (general anesthesia) or sedated (local anesthesia).
• Through two tiny skin openings in the back (each opening about 1/6 or an inch long) specialized tubes are inserted directly into the fractured vertebra. This is done under guidance by a specialized X-ray imaging to allow precise placement.
• Through each tube, a special balloon is inserted into the collapsed vertebra. Once the balloons are in place, they are sequentially inflated with a liquid under X-ray guidance with the goal of re-establishing the original height of the collapsed vertebra.
• The balloons are then deflated, leaving an empty cavity within the bone that has now been expanded.
• At this stage, highly viscous bone cement is inserted into the vertebra through both tubes under X-ray guidance to assure the cement is not leaking out of the vertebra. The cement hardens within minutes.