Flexible Stabilisation of the Degenerative LumbarSpine Using PEEK Rods

Posterior lumbar interbody fusion using cages, titanium rods, and pedicle screws is considered today as the gold standard of surgicaltreatment of lumbar degenerative disease and has produced satisfying long-term fusion rates. However this rigid material couldchange the physiological distribution of load at the instrumental and adjacent segments, a main cause of implant failure and adjacentsegment disease, responsible for a high rate of further surgery in the following years. More recently, semirigid instrumentationsystems using rods made of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) have been introduced. This clinical study of 21 patients focuses onthe clinical and radiological outcomes of patients with lumbar degenerative disease treated with Initial VEOS PEEKÝ-Optimasystem (Innov’Spine, France) composed of rods made from PEEK-OPTIMAÝpolymer (Invibio Biomaterial Solutions, UK) withoutarthrodesis. With an average follow-up of 2 years and half, the chances of reoperation were significantly reduced (4.8%), quality oflife was improved (ODI = 16%), and the adjacent disc was preserved in more than 70% of cases. Based on these results, combinedwith the biomechanical and clinical data already published, PEEK rods systems can be considered as a safe and effective alternativesolution to rigid ones