Mechanical Vertebral Body Augmentation Versus Conventional Balloon Kyphoplasty for Osteoporotic Thoracolumbar Compression Fractures: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Outcomes

Study Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: Surgical management of osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures (OVCFs) has traditionally consisted of vertebroplasty or kyphoplasty procedures. Mechanical percutaneous vertebral body augmentation (MPVA) systems have recently been introduced as alternatives to traditional methods. However, the effectiveness of MPVA systems vs conventional augmentation techniques for OVCFs remains unclear. This serves as the premise for this study.

Methods: A systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted as per the guidelines. Studies of interest included randomized controlled trials (RCTs) which directly compared patient outcomes following kyphoplasty to patients treated with MPVA systems. Clinical and radiological findings were collated and compared for significance between cohorts.

Results: 6 RCTs were identified with 1024 patients total. The mean age of all patients was 73.5 years. 17% of the cohort were male, 83% were female. 515 patients underwent kyphoplasty and 509 underwent mechanical vertebral body augmentation using MPVA systems. MPVAs showed similar efficacy for restoration of vertebral body height ( = .18), total complications ( = .36), cement extravasation ( = .58) and device-related complications ( = .06). MPVAs also showed reduced rates of all new fractures (16.4% vs 22.2%; = .17) and adjacent fractures (14.7% vs 18.9%; = .23), with improved visual analogue scale (VAS) scores at 6-month ( = .13).

Conclusion: The results of this meta-analysis highlight no significant improvement in clinical or radiological outcomes for MPVA systems when compared to balloon kyphoplasty for vertebral body augmentation. Further research is needed to establish a true benefit over traditional operative methods.