Introduction
The dorsolumbar region is regarded amongst the most critical biomechanical transition zones where the rigid thoracic kyphosis come together with the more flexible lumbar lordosis. Once it is decided that thoracolumbar junction fractures are to be treated surgically, the treatment objective (irrespective of selected method of treatment) is to fix stability of vertebral column, decompress the vertebral canal, manage the patient's pain and fasten patient mobilization.
Short segment fixation was improved to have screws inserted bilaterally into the fractured vertebra. This markedly reduced the number of cases that experienced screw loosening, correction loss and screw breakage with this method. Still there is a controversy between utility of short segment versus long segment fixation as some comparative studies are with long segment fixation, and report slightly higher complication rates with short segment compared to long segment fixation. Other comparative studies are with short segment fixation and they demonstrate that long-term clinical results have no significant difference between the two methods.