Glucocorticosteroid-induced osteoporosis is the most frequent of all secondary types of osteoporosis, and can increase the risk of vertebral compression fractures (VCFs). There are promising additions to current medical treatment for appropriately selected osteoporotic patients. Few studies have reported on the efficiency of percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) or kyphoplasty for whole thoracic and lumbar glucocorticosteroid-induced osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures. We report a case of a 67-year-old man with intractable pain caused by successional VCFs treated by PVP.
Aged ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/drug therapy ; Fractures, Compression/*radiography ; Glucocorticoids/*adverse effects/therapeutic use ; Humans ; Kyphoplasty ; Lumbar Vertebrae/radiography/surgery ; Male ; Osteoporosis/*chemically induced/radiography/surgery ; Pulmonary Fibrosis/drug therapy ; Thoracic Vertebrae/radiography/surgery ; Vertebroplasty

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Increased osteoclast activity is a pivotal finding in osteoporosis. This increase is mediated via the mevalonate-to-cholesterol pathway, which is involved in producing the intermediates required for osteoclast activity. D-003, a mixture of high molecular weight sugarcane wax acids, has been shown to inhibit cholesterol synthesis prior to mevalonate production, resulting in a reduction of bone loss and resorption in ovariectomized rats. Moreover, previous studies have demonstrated that short-term D-003 treatment reduces urinary excretion of deoxypyridinoline/creatinine in postmenopausal women. METHODS: We performed a double-blinded, placebo-controlled study to investigate the effects of D-003 (10 mg/day) treatment for 3 years on bone mineral density (BMD) in 83 postmenopausal women with low BMD. RESULTS: Over 3 years, D-003 treatment increased lumbar spine BMD (5.1%, p < 0.01) and improved osteoporosis-related quality of life scores as compared with placebo-treated controls. D-003 was also well tolerated; the frequency of adverse events in the bone, joints, or muscle with D-003 treatment (p < 0.05) was lower than in the placebo group. CONCLUSIONS: D-003 treatment (10 mg/day) for 3 years increased lumbar spine BMD and produced clinical improvements in postmenopausal women with low BMD. Further studies, however, will be required to confirm these results.
Absorptiometry, Photon ; Adult ; Aged ; Analysis of Variance ; Bone Density/*drug effects ; Bone Density Conservation Agents/*administration & dosage/adverse effects ; Cuba ; Double-Blind Method ; Fatty Acids/*administration & dosage/adverse effects ; Female ; Femur Neck/*drug effects/radiography ; Humans ; Lipids/blood ; Lumbar Vertebrae/*drug effects/radiography ; Middle Aged ; Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal/blood/*drug therapy/psychology/radiography ; Quality of Life ; Questionnaires ; Time Factors ; Treatment Outcome

The purpose of this open-labeled prospective study was to compare the treatment effects of cyclical etidronate and alendronate on the lumbar bone mineral density (BMD), bone resorption, and back pain in elderly women with osteoporosis. Fifty postmenopausal women with osteoporosis, age ranging from 55 to 86 years (mean: 70.7 years), were randomly divided into two groups with 25 patients in each group: the cyclical etidronate group (etidronate 200 mg daily for 2 weeks every 3 months) and the alendronate group (5 mg daily). The BMD of the lumbar spine (L1-L4) measured by DXA, the urinary cross-linked N-terminal telopeptides of type I collagen (NTX) level measured by the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and back pain evaluated by the face scale score were assessed at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months. There were no significant differences in baseline characteristics including age, body mass index, years since menopause, lumbar BMD, urinary NTX level, and face scale score between the two treatment groups. Etidronate treatment sustained the lumbar BMD following a reduction in the urinary NTX level and improved back pain, while alendronate treatment reduced the urinary NTX level more significantly, resulting in an increase in the lumbar BMD, and similarly improved back pain. No serious adverse events were observed in either group. This study confirmed that alendronate treatment had a greater efficacy than etidronate treatment in increasing the lumbar BMD through the reduction of bone resorption in elderly women with osteoporosis.
Spinal Fractures/prevention & control/radiography ; Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal/*drug therapy ; Middle Aged ; Lumbar Vertebrae/*drug effects ; Humans ; Female ; Etidronic Acid/adverse effects/*therapeutic use ; Bone Density Conservation Agents/adverse effects/*therapeutic use ; Bone Density/*drug effects ; Biological Markers/blood/urine ; Back Pain/drug therapy ; Alendronate/adverse effects/*therapeutic use ; Aged, 80 and over ; Aged

BACKGROUND: Few studies have explored the effects of bisphosphonates on bony healing in patients undergoing spinal fusion surgery. Most previous studies used animal models and found that bisphosphonate shows negative effects on spinal fusion consolidation. We intended to evaluate the effect of a single-dose of zoledronic acid on the volume of the fusion-mass in lumbar spinal fusion. METHODS: A retrospective review was carried out on 44 patients with symptomatic degenerative lumbar spinal stenosis who underwent one or two-level posterolateral fusion from January 2008 and January 2011. They were divided into 4 groups: group 1, autograft and zoledronic acid; group 2, allograft and zoledronic acid; group 3, autograft alone; and group 4, allograft alone. Functional radiography and three-dimensional computed tomography scans were used to evaluate and quantify the volume of the fusion-mass. The visual analog scale (VAS), the Oswestry disability index (ODI), and the short form 36 (SF-36) were used to evaluate the clinical outcomes. RESULTS: The mean volume of the fusion-mass per level was 8,814 mm3, 8,035 mm3, 8,383 mm3, and 7,550 mm3 in groups 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, but there were no significant differences between the groups (p = 0.829). There were no significant decreases in the volume of the fusion-mass (p = 0.533) in the zoledronic acid groups (groups 1 and 2). The VAS, the ODI, and the SF-36 at the 6-month follow-up after surgery were not significantly different (p > 0.05) among the 4 groups. The VAS, the ODI, and the SF-36 were not correlated with the volume of the fusion-mass (p = 0.120, 0.609, 0.642). CONCLUSIONS: A single dose of zoledronic acid does not decrease the volume of the fusion-mass in patients undergoing spinal fusion with osteoporosis. Therefore, we recommend that zoledronic acid may be used after spinal fusion in osteoporotic patients.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Bone Density Conservation Agents/*therapeutic use ; Diphosphonates/*therapeutic use ; Female ; Humans ; Imidazoles/*therapeutic use ; Lumbar Vertebrae/drug effects/pathology/radiography/surgery ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Osteoporosis/drug therapy ; Pain Measurement ; Pain, Postoperative ; Quality of Life ; Retrospective Studies ; Spinal Fusion/adverse effects/*methods ; Spinal Stenosis/pathology/radiography/*surgery ; Treatment Outcome

The purpose of this study was to determine factors that could predict the one-year response of the lumbar bone mineral density (BMD) to alendronate treatment in elderly Japanese women with osteoporosis. Eighty-five postmenopausal women with osteoporosis, all of whom were between 55-88 years of age, were treated with alendronate (5 mg daily) for 12 months. Serum calcium, phosphorus, and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and urinary NTX levels were measured at the baseline and 6 months, and lumbar (L1-L4) BMD was measured by dual energy X-ray absorptiometry at the baseline and 12 months. Multiple regression analysis was used to determine factors that were correlated with the percent change in lumbar BMD at 12 months. Lumbar BMD increased by 8.1 % at 12 months with a reduction in the urinary NTX level by 51.0 % at 6 months. Baseline lumbar BMD (R2=0.226, p< 0.0001) and percent changes in serum ALP and urinary NTX levels (R2=0.044, p< 0.05 and R2=0.103, p< 0.001, respectively) had a negative correlation with the percent change in lumbar BMD at month 12, while the baseline number of prevalent vertebral fractures (R2=0.163, p< 0.001), serum ALP level, and urinary NTX level (R2=0.074, p< 0.05 and R2=0.160, p< 0.001, respectively) had a positive correlation with it. However, baseline age, height, body weight, body mass index, years since menopause, serum calcium and phosphorus levels, and percent changes in serum calcium and phosphorus levels at 6 months did not have any significant correlation with the percent change in lumbar BMD at 12 months. These results suggest that lumbar BMD was more responsive to one-year of alendronate treatment in elderly osteoporotic Japanese women with lower lumbar BMD, more prevalent vertebral fractures, and higher bone turnover, who showed a greater decrease in bone turnover at 6 months, regardless of age, years since menopause, and physique. Alendronate may be efficacious in elderly Japanese women with evident osteoporosis that is associated with high bone turnover, and the percent changes in serum ALP and urinary NTX levels at 6 months could predict the one-year response of lumbar BMD to alendronate treatment.
Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Alendronate/*administration & dosage ; Alkaline Phosphatase/blood ; Bone Density/*drug effects ; Calcium/blood ; Collagen/urine ; Densitometry, X-Ray ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Japan ; *Lumbar Vertebrae/radiography ; Middle Aged ; Osteoporosis, Postmenopausal/*drug therapy/epidemiology/radiography ; Peptides/urine ; Phosphorus/blood ; Spinal Fractures/epidemiology/prevention & control

PURPOSE: To investigate the prevalence of paralytic ileus after spinal operation in the supine or prone operative position and to determine the efficacy of prophylactic gastrointestinal motility medications in preventing symptomatic paralytic ileus after a spinal operation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: All patients received spinal surgery in the supine or prone operative position. The study period was divided into two phases: first, to analyze the prevalence of radiographic and symptomatic paralytic ileus after a spinal operation, and second, to determine the therapeutic effects of prophylactic gastrointestinal motility medications (postoperative intravenous injection of scopolamine butylbromide and metoclopramide hydrochloride) on symptomatic paralytic ileus after a spinal operation. RESULTS: Basic demographic data were not different. In the first phase of this study, 27 patients (32.9%) with radiographic paralytic ileus and 11 patients (13.4%) with symptomatic paralytic ileus were observed. Radiographic paralytic ileus was more often noted in patients who underwent an operation in the prone position (p=0.044); whereas the occurrence of symptomatic paralytic ileus was not different between the supine and prone positioned patients (p=0.385). In the second phase, prophylactic medications were shown to be ineffective in preventing symptomatic paralytic ileus after spinal surgery [symptomatic paralytic ileus was observed in 11.1% (4/36) with prophylactic medication and 16.7% (5/30) with a placebo, p=0.513]. CONCLUSION: Spinal surgery in the prone position was shown to increase the likelihood of radiographic paralytic ileus occurrence, but not symptomatic paralytic ileus. Unfortunately, the prophylactic medications to prevent symptomatic paralytic ileus after spine surgery were shown to be ineffective.
Adjuvants, Anesthesia/*administration & dosage/pharmacology ; Adult ; Aged ; Antiemetics/*administration & dosage/pharmacology ; Female ; Gastrointestinal Motility/*drug effects/physiology ; Humans ; Injections, Intravenous ; Intestinal Pseudo-Obstruction/drug therapy/epidemiology/*prevention & control ; Lumbar Vertebrae/radiography/*surgery ; Male ; Metoclopramide/*administration & dosage/pharmacology ; Middle Aged ; Postoperative Complications/epidemiology ; Prevalence ; Prone Position ; Prospective Studies ; Republic of Korea ; Scopolamine Hydrobromide/*administration & dosage/*pharmacology ; Spinal Fusion/*adverse effects ; Supine Position ; Treatment Outcome

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is one of the most effective therapies for unresectable hepatocelluar carcinoma or metastatic hypervascular tumors. Abscess occurring in the other organs beside the liver after TACE is a complication that often occurs, sometimes potentially fatal. We report a case of spinal epidural abscess occurred after liver abscess complicated by TACE in a patient with metastatic neuroendocrine tumors to the liver. A 67-year-old female underwent TACE first for the metastatic lesions to liver, with a history of pancreatoduodenectomy for the primary pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor. Four days after TACE, sudden high fever occurred, and liver abscess was found on abdominal CT. Two days later, back pain and radiating pain to the right leg occurred, and lumbar spine MRI showed spinal epidural abscess. After intravenous antibiotics for 8 weeks and partial laminectomy, the patient recovered and was discharged without complications.
Aged ; Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use ; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular/secondary/*therapy ; Chemoembolization, Therapeutic/*adverse effects ; Epidural Abscess/*etiology/microbiology/surgery ; Escherichia coli/isolation & purification ; Escherichia coli Infections/drug therapy ; Female ; Humans ; Laminectomy ; Liver Abscess/*etiology ; Liver Neoplasms/secondary/*therapy ; Lumbar Vertebrae/microbiology/radiography ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Neuroendocrine Tumors/pathology/surgery ; Pancreaticoduodenectomy ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed