Burst Fractures
Burst Fractures
A burst fracture is a type of spinal injury in which a vertebrae breaks from a high-energy axial (vertical) load (car accidents or falls from height), with all or pieces of the vertebra pushed into surrounding tissues and sometimes the spinal canal. Burst fractures are more severe than compression fractures because they involve more of the vertebrae and often cause compression of nerves due to bone fragments. Burst fractures require either full time bracing or stabilization with spinal fusion. Sometimes the bone fragments need to removed from the spinal canal to decrease pressure on nerves by way of corpectomy or laminectomy.