Halo Gravity Traction Can Mitigate Preoperative Risk Factors and Early Surgical Complications in Complex Spine Deformity

Study Design.
Retrospective review of prospective cohort.
Objective.
We sought to examine the role of halo gravity traction (HGT) in reducing preoperative surgical risk.
Summary of Background Data.
The impact of HGT on procedure choice, preoperative risk factors, and surgical complications has not been previously described.
Methods.
Patients treated with HGT before primary surgery were included. The FOCOS Score (FS) was used to quantify operative risk. FS was calculated using patient-factors (ASIA, body mass index, etiology), procedure-factors (PcF; osteotomy planned, number of levels fused, etc.), and curve magnitude (CM). Scores ranged from 0 to 100 with higher scores indicating increased risk. FS was calculated before and after HGT to see how changes in FS affected complication rates.
Results.
A total of 96 patients were included. Halo-related complications occurred in 34% of patients but revision was required in only 8.3%. Average FS improved by 18 points after HGT. CM, PcF, and patient-factors all improved (P 

Source: Spine - April 18, 2019 Category: Orthopaedics Tags: DEFORMITY Source Type: research