Slanted slot was the most resistant to failure of ventral slot techniques tested in rabbit cervical vertebrae

Abstract

The ventral slot technique is used to relieve neural compression secondary to intervertebral disc degeneration or disease. In the present study, the biomechanical properties of three different ventral surgical procedures in the rabbit C6–C7 vertebral motion unit (VMU) were assessed and compared with the intact C6–C7 VMU. The ventral slot procedure (slanted, full, or mini; n = 8/group) was performed on these cervical vertebrae. Normal spine torsion and flexion values were compared to those of spines subjected to slanted, full, and mini slot surgery. The slanted slot spines were the most stable, maintaining 70% of normal cervical spine strength, compared to 26% with the full slot and 30% with the mini slot. Regarding torsion, slanted slot spines showed 74% stability compared to the normal cervical spine, while the full slot and mini slot spines showed 58% and 62% stability, respectively. Flexion values were lower after all versions of the ventral slot procedure than in the normal spine, with the greatest flexion difference occurring after the full slot procedure (21% of the normal flexion value). The flexion values also differed significantly between the slanted and full spine groups, and all operated spines showing roughly 60% torsion rates compared with normal spines. The slanted slot maintains more stability in rabbit cervical spine than the other procedures. To our knowledge, this was the first study to examine biomechanical failure differences between the distinct versions of this ventral slot procedure.