Abstract
The thoracic spine is the largest segment of the spinal column and is comprised of 12 vertebrae. It confers immense stability to the entire spine being an integrated unit between a vertebral system and a costal system. The functional spinal unit is the smallest functional motion spinal segment and is characterized by a neutral and an elastic zone that dictate spinal stability and stiffness, respectively. Several spinal fixation devices were introduced that aim at creating a rigid construct with the spine, a construct that maintains position, provides stabilization, and restores alignment. Spinal hardware may fail due to incorrect selection/placement or from migration, dislodgment, or implant failure with time.
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Hammad, A., Goel, V., Ahmad, A.A. (2023). Biomechanics of the Thoracic Spine. In: Banerjee, A., Biberthaler, P., Shanmugasundaram, S. (eds) Handbook of Orthopaedic Trauma Implantology. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-7540-0_114
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-7540-0_114
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