This patient is a 34-year-old female with idiopathic scoliosis who previously had spinal fusion with Luque instrumentation at age 13. The Luque rod had broken and was protruding from her skin. She now has a residual thoracic curve of over 86 degrees without a solid fusion. The surgery involved removing the failed hardware, performing multiple osteotomies, installing new segmental spinal instrumentation from T2 to the sacrum with pelvic fixation, and posterior spinal fusion. Post-operatively, the patient was perfectly balanced in the sagittal and coronal planes.

1. Case Review:
34 year old female with
Idiopathic Scoliosis, and a
broken Luque Rod.
Robert S Pashman, MD
Scoliosis and Spinal Deformity Surgery
www.eSpine.com

2. Patient History
34-year-old female.
Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis.
The patient had a spinal fusion with Luque instrumentation placed in The
Philippines at age 13.
Recent pregnancy.
The patient was admitted to the hospital because the Luque rod had broken
and had moved it was pointing and piercing the skin to the level of her mid
buttock. At that time the piece of the rod was removed.
The patient on 36 x 14 x-rays has residual Luque instrumentation which is
fractured, broken, all wires are broken, and the fixation is lost.

3. Pre-op X-rays
The patient has greater than an 86° residual
large thoracic curve. This is a significant
problem because she does not have a
fusion.
The proximal instrumentation is pointing
on the left-hand side and will probably
break through the skin. The patient is
loosing height and I think that this is a very
significant serious issue at this point.
The patient and needs a posterior removal
of the instrumentation, placement of the
screws with O arm and a T2 to sacral pelvic
fusion. Will classify this is a King III curve
and the patient needs to be taken to the
pelvis because this is the only way to
balance the patient's coronal and sagittal
plane, especially with a long fusion that
involves tilting of L5 and L4.

4. Indications for Surgery
1. Failed adolescent, now adult idiopathic scoliosis.
2. Status post Luque sublaminar wire fixation.
3. Failed hardware.
4. Progressive adult idiopathic scoliosis measuring 90° for the primary curve, 70°
for the upper thoracic rigid curve and a fractional lumbosacral curve.
5. Fracture of the rod and dislocation of the hardware through the skin, status
post 6 months ago.
6. Now with decompensation in forward and sagittal plane.
7. Unable to ambulate with increasing pain and neurologic deficits.
8. KIM/SRP type III

5. Surgical Strategy
Segmental spinal instrumentation T2 to sacral pelvis using 5.5 stainless steel
pedicle screw/rod construct.
Bilateral single lateral pelvic fixation through a separate incision.
Posterior spinal fusion using the combination of autogenous bone
morphogenic protein and allograft bone T2 to sacral pelvis.
Removal of retained hardware Luque rods.
Multiple level Smith-Peterson osteotomy for mobilization of semirigid failed
thoracic ostia spine including osteotomies of T3- 4, 4-5, T5-6, T6-7, T7-8, T8-
9, T9-10, T10-11, T12-L1, L1-L2.
Intraoperative O-arm neuronavigation.
Debridement of old hardware fixation inflammatory tissue with intraoperative
biopsy.
Intraoperative somatosensory evoked potentials management.

6. Post-Op Films
The patient is perfectly balanced in
both the saggittal and coronal plane.

7. Pre-Op/Post-op Comparison

8. Pre-Op/Post-op Comparison