With the ageing of the population, there is an increasing need for minimally invasive
spine surgeries to relieve pain and improve quality of life. Percutaneous Cement Discoplasty
is a minimally invasive technique to treat advanced disc degeneration, including vacuum
phenomenon. The present study aimed to develop an in vitro model of percutaneous cement
discoplasty to investigate its consequences on the spine biomechanics in comparison
with the degenerated condition. Human spinal segments ( n = 27) were tested at 50%
body weight in flexion and extension. Posterior disc height, range of motion, segment
stiffness, and strains were measured using Digital Image Correlation. The cement distribution
was also studied on CT scans. As main result, percutaneous cement discoplasty restored
the posterior disc height by 41% for flexion and 35% for extension. Range of motion
was significantly reduced only in flexion by 27%, and stiffness increased accordingly.
The injected cement volume was 4.56 ± 1.78 ml (mean ± SD). Some specimens ( n = 7)
exhibited cement perforation of one endplate. The thickness of the cement mass moderately
correlated with the posterior disc height and range of motion with different trends
for flexions vs. extension. Finally, extreme strains on the discs were reduced by
percutaneous cement discoplasty, with modified patterns of the distribution. To conclude,
this study supported clinical observations in term of recovered disc height close
to the foramen, while percutaneous cement discoplasty helped stabilize the spine in
flexion and did not increase the risk of tissue damage in the annulus.
