Spinal compression fractures may not require bracing for good outcomes

Patients with spinal compression fractures who were braced to treat their injury had comparable pain, function and healing outcomes to those in patients who did not wear a brace for the same injury, according to study findings published in the Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery.

In the Korean study, 60 patients with at least one osteoporosis-related spinal fracture were assigned to wear a brace, a soft brace or no brace at all. The researchers measured outcomes at 12 weeks using the patients’ Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) scores.

Study results showed the mean adjusted ODI scores in the no-brace and soft-brace groups were 35.95 and 37.83, respectively, and the adjusted scores in the no-brace and rigid-brace groups were 35.95 and 33.54.

The researchers also found overall VAS pain scores did not differ significantly between the groups at 12 weeks. Additionally, there were no differences in compression ratio, general health status or and patient satisfaction rates among the three groups, according to a press release about the study.

Reference: www.aaos.org.