THE ROLE OF IMAGING IN THE DIAGNOSIS AND MANAGEMENT OF THORACOLUMBAR BURST FRACTURES - CURRENT CONCEPTS AND A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

The burst fracture of the spine was first described by Holdsworth in 1 963 and redefined by Denis in 1983 as being a fracture of the anterior and middle columns of the spine with or without an associated posteri or column fracture. This injury has received much attention in the lit erature as regards its radiological diagnosis and also its clinical ma nagment. The purpose of this article is to review the way that imaging has been used both to diagnose the injury and to guide management. Cu rrent concepts of the stability of this fracture are presented and our experience in the use of magnetic resonance imaging in deciding treat ment options is discussed.