Objective: To describe the up-to-date development in spine and spine cord injuries.
Methods: To summarize the clinical and basic research on spine and spine cord injuries were summarized by reviewing papers and combining them with our own experience.
Results: The occipitocervical and atlantoaxial fusions by the pedicle or the lateral mass screw were widely used to treat the upper cervical fractures. The anterior cervical plate, posterior pedicle or lateral mass screw fixation techniques were used in treatment of lower cervical fractures. The clinical application of artificial cervical disc replacement showed the good biomechanical results in treatment of serious cervical disc diseases. However, there were no unified criteria for selection of the surgical approach, fixation level, and fusion model in the treatment of thoracolumbar spine fractures. Lumbar posterior dynamic fixation and artificial disc replacement for treatment of degenerative lumbar disc diseases provided the biomechanical stabilization and reduced the morbidity of adjacent segment diseases, but there was lack of long-term follow-up results. The basic research in spine cord injuries, especially in apoptotic signal pathway, made great progress. The biological treatment including cell transplantation and gene therapy provided the solid theoretical foundation for clinical application.
Conclusion: The reparative and reconstructive development in spine and spine cord injuries has made great progress in recent years.