 | This article may be too technical for most readers to understand.(July 2014) |
Radiofrequency targeted vertebral augmentation (also written as RF-TVA) is a form of kyphoplasty that uses radiofrequency heat to control the viscosity of polymethylmethacrylate cement and deliver it into the vertebral body to treat vertebral compression fractures. [1]
Radiofrequency targeted vertebral augmentation is a minimally invasive procedure designed to preserve good bone while performing vertebral augmentation (sometimes referred to as kyphoplasty). [2] With traditional kyphoplasty, a balloon is used to create a space within the cancellous bone and then cement is injected into the space. The RF-TVA procedure is different in that a physician directs a small navigational canula into the vertebra and creates a small pathways for the cement as opposed to using a balloon. This process preserves more of the healthy canncellous bone. [1] [3] The pathways are then filled with ultra-high viscosity bone cement which then permeates into the surrounding bone, stabilizing the fracture [4] and restoring vertebral height. [1] As of 2014, the system has been used to treat more than 15,000 spinal fractures worldwide.
RF-TVA was first developed by DFINE, Inc., a medical device company based in San Jose, California. [5] Its product, the StabiliT Vertebral Augmentation System received 510(k) clearance from the United States Food and Drug Administration in 2008 and is CE marked for commercial sale in Europe.