Percutaneous anterior odontoid screw fixation.

OBJECTIVE: A technical description of a novel percutaneous technique of anterior odontoid screw fixation is given and the clinical and radiological results of this technique in 5 patients are described. METHOD: The percutaneous anterior odontoid screw fixation technique was described as a cadaveric study in 1999. To the best of our knowledge, no patient series operated on by this technique has so far been presented in the English literature. We have percutaneously operated on 5 patients with unstable odontoid fractures between February 2004 and July 2006. RESULTS: There have not been any complications in our patients. The first four patients showed radiological evidence of fusion in their latest control. CONCLUSIONS: Percutaneous anterior odontoid screw fixation is a minimally invasive and feasible surgical procedure.