Dr. Caleb Seale adds kyphoplasty procedure to treat spinal fractures at Valley View’s Spine Center

A vertebral body compression fracture occurs when one of the bones in the spine weakens and breaks, often caused by osteoporosis or other conditions such as cancer, physical trauma or benign lesions.

Now Valley View’s Spine Center has a treatment for this painful condition – kyphoplasty -- performed by Dr. Caleb Seale, physical medicine and interventional pain management physician.

Kyphoplasty is a minimally invasive procedure performed in the operating room under anesthesia that uses balloons inserted through small incisions on the back to repair fractures and create cavities that are filled with bone cement to stabilize the bone like an “internal cast.”

“Kyphoplasty stabilizes the bone in the body, and improves strength, while preventing kyphotic (forward curvature of the spine),” says Dr. Seale. “Many people have severe pain with vertebral body fractures. This decreases severe pain and helps them move on with their lives.”

The kyphoplasty procedure typically takes less than an hour to complete on an outpatient basis and has been clinically shown to relieve pain and improve patients’ quality of life compared to non-surgical treatments like pain medication and bed rest.

But this procedure is not for everyone. Dr. Seale says the best candidates are those with lumbar or thoracic compression fractures. A consultation with Dr. Seale will help determine if kyphoplasty or another treatment is best.

To learn more about kyphoplasty, or to make an appointment with Dr. Caleb Seale at Valley View’s Spine Center, call 970.384.8060.