Time to stop turning your back on back pain

Generally ignored as a symptom of tiredness, chronic back pain could indicate something more serious, such as an osteoporotic vertebral fracture. While healthy diet and active lifestyle can keep bones strong, innovative medical procedures, such as Balloon Kyphoplasty can help treat and manage osteoporotic spinal fractures in severe cases

Thirty-nine-year-old Madhu Arora, a writer by profession, could never imagine that her constant back pain could mean something far more serious than a sign of exhaustion and overwork. It came as a shock to her when the x-ray showed a vertebral fracture, one of the most common osteoporotic fractures.

Her is not an isolated case. Data suggests that osteoporotic compression fractures affect millions of people globally. Chronic back pain, which is often mistaken as fatigue, is strongly associated with vertebral fractures, leading to functional loss, disability and poor quality of life.

Known to cause more than 8.9 million fractures annually, osteoporosis is a generalized skeletal disorder of low bone mass (thinning of the bone) and deterioration in its architecture. With the rise in the number of youngsters leading sedentary lifestyles, poor eating habits and using tobacco, osteoporosis is no longer a disease of the aging population.

As per research studies, approximately 30-50 percent of women and 20-30 percent of men develop vertebral fractures and half of them develop multiple fractures during their lifetimes, compared with a 15.6 percent lifetime risk of a hip fracture. Not just this, vertebral fractures lead to loss in height, deformity, immobility, increased number of bed days and reduced pulmonary function.

Psychological impact can include loss of self esteem, distorted body image, and even depression. The spinal cord is the most important part of the human anatomy. Osteoporosis weakens the vertebrae forcing them to shrink or narrow down. These weakened vertebrae then can break even with a slight trauma to it.

This could very well render the person bed-ridden for the rest of his/her life. Non-surgical treatments include bed rest, medication, lifestyle management, physiotherapy and caution. In case the damage to the vertebrae is much beyond the scope of non-surgical treatment, it becomes inevitable to get it corrected through surgery.

According to experts, Balloon Kyphoplasty is one such technology which can easily help treat her problem without too many complications. It is a minimally invasive surgery technique. In a minimally invasive surgery, a small incision is made to get to the problem area which ensures low levels of trauma to the tissues, tiny incision, and better blood supply to the operated area.

Earlier, only extensive procedures were available to treat vertebral compression. This would typically require the patient to stay for a long period of time in the hospital, while experiencing delayed recovery and other complications. Dr Manohar Reddy, Neuro Surgeon, Apollo Hospital at Hyderabad, says, “Balloon kyphoplasty, which restores the compressed spine and stabilizes the fracture, is a safe option for patients.

In Balloon kyphoplasty, typically, two balloons are used, one on each side of the vertebral column, to support the bone in a better way as it moves back into position and increases the likelihood of deformity correction.”Once the vertebral body is in the correct position, the balloons are deflated and removed.

The cavity is filled with thick bone cement to stabilize the fracture. The bone cement forms an internal cast that holds the vertebral body in place. Advent of such novel medical technologies brings hope to many patients while assisting surgeons to achieve the desired results with the least possible complications and trauma, say experts.

So, while a calcium-rich diet and physical activity are important to ensure good bone health, technologies like Balloon kyphoplasty will help people suffering from vertebral compression fracture to live healthier lives.