Clinical efficacy of three types of autogenous bone grafts in treatment of single-segment thoracic tuberculosis: A retrospective cohort study

A retrospective study investigated and compared the results of lamina with spinous process (LSP), transverse process strut (TPS) and iliac graft (IG) as bone graft in thoracic single-segment spinal tuberculosis(TB) with the one-stage posterior approach of debridement, fusion and internal instrumentation. 99 patients treated from January 2012 to December 2015 were reviewed. LSP was performed in 35 patients (group A), TPS was undertaken in 33 patients (group B), and IG was carried out in 31 patients (group C). Surgical time, blood loss, hospitalization time, drainage volume, and follow-up (FU) duration were recorded. The visual analog scale (VAS), Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), C-reactive protein (CRP), American Spinal Injury Association (ASIA) grade, segmental angle, intervertebral height and bone fusion time were compared between preoperative and final FU. All the patients were followed up for a mean 43.90±10.39 months in group A, 45.30±6.20 months in group B, 44.32±7.17 months in group C without difference( P >0.05). The mean age was younger, the blood loss was less, the hospitalization time and the surgical time were shorter in group A than those in group B and C ( P P P >0.05). In conclusion, the LSP and TPS as bone graft are reliable, safe, and effective for single-segment stability reconstruction for surgical management of thoracic TB and TPS could be new bone graft methods.