Percutaneous kyphoplasty: indications and technique in the treatment of vertebral fractures from myeloma

Aims and background: The purpose of our research was to assess the effectiveness and safety of percutaneous kyphoplasty, the new method of treatment for pain deriving from vertebral compression fractures due to myeloma. Methods: We treated 3 patients with pain refractory to conventional medical therapy (analgesics, bed-rest, bracing with orthopedic devices for more than 4 weeks), localized in the lumbar area, painful to the touch and in the absence of neurological signs. Results: The method demonstrated a swift pain relief associated with an evident augmentation in the resistance and restoration of the vertebral body's physiological shape. Polymethylmethacrylate leaks were not observed in the epidural or foraminal area, nor were complications such as pulmonary embolism for involvement of the venous plexus or related to phenomenon of infections due to the procedure, or toxicity due to the polymethylmethacrylate. Conclusions: Kyphoplasty was found to be an effective alternative, simple and safe in the treatment of vertebral collapse consequent to multiple myeloma. The same injection of polymethylmethacrylate can be done before the radiotherapy treatment, thereby synergizing its delayed analgesic action to pain, or after the failure or in the case of local recurrence.