Spine talk on tap by this weekend

FRISCO — As people get older they lose bone mass and as a result can end up with compression fractures in their spine that cause pain, said Dr. Dhruv Pateder.

Pateder is an orthopaedic and neurological spine surgeon with the Steadman Hawkins Clinic in Frisco and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. he will be giving a free presentation at the Summit Community and Senior Center near Frisco. The topic is prevention and treatment of osteoporotic spinal fractures and it is open to the public.

In the past, sometimes compression fractures in the spine were ignored because it would have taken a four- to five-hour procedure that involved cutting the muscle, said Pateder who wants people to understand there are more options these days. Now, the incision would be about the size of a pencil tip and no muscle would be cut, which means less pain, he explained.

And these kind of fractures can be fairly common. In an elderly person with osteoporosis it could happen with a sneeze and is a reason why over time some people begin to stoop or lose height as they get older, Pateder explained.

The new procedures that are available include a vertebroplasty, a small incision where cement is injected to solidify the bone. Also, a kyphoplasty, which is performed similarly but with the addition of a balloon that is placed inside to restore height and then cement is injected around it.

As a result of these procedures, the bone is stabilized and pain is decreased, Pateder said. However, not all compression fractures need to be treated, he added.
These treatments could be particularly helpful for post menopausal women in their late 50s or skiers who crouch down and break their bone.

“They can get instantaneous relief,” Pateder said.

Also, some of the prevention advice he offered includes taking calcium and vitamin D to help with loss of bone.

<I> Lory Pounder can be reached at (970) 668-4628, or at lpounder@summitdaily.com. </I>