Case 4
Increased Confidence in Making Decisions during Follow-up
A 57-year-old female patient with myelopathy and existing C3/C4 disc degeneration was diagnosed with C4 metastasis from renal cancer.
Therapy
Vertebrectomy and anterior stabilization with the KONG®-C VBR System and the icotec Anterior Cervical Plate
Successful decompression of the spinal cord and good positioning of the implants could be assessed on low-artifact imaging without any problems.
BlackArmor® Carbon/PEEK increases confidence in making decisions during follow-up visits, as anatomical structures close to the implant can be accurately assessed.1Krätzig T. et al. (2021): Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced PEEK versus Titanium Implants: An In Vitro Comparison of Susceptibility Artifacts in CT and MR Imaging. Neurosurgical Review. (PubMed, PMID: 32930911)2Ringel F. et al. (2017): Radiolucent Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Pedicle Screws for Treatment of Spinal Tumors: Advantages for Radiation Planning and Follow-Up Imaging. World Neurosurgery. (PubMed, PMID: 28478252)3Fleege C. et al. (2020): Carbon-Fiber-Reinforced Pedicle Screws Reduce Artifacts in Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Patients with Lumbar Spondylodesis. Scientific Reports. (PubMed, PMID: 32999385)4Kalasauskas D. et al. (2022): Qualitative Assessment of Titanium versus Carbon Fiber/Polyetheretherketone Pedicle Screw-Related Artifacts: A Cadaveric Study. World Neurosurgery. (PubMed, PMID: 35803562)Titanium implants make this significantly more difficult due to artifacts on MRI.