Low-impact spinal fractures in young patients are rare and should raise suspicion of an underlying condition, as these injuries are typically the result of high-energy trauma. We describe a case of a young male patient who sustained a burst fracture of the first lumbar vertebra (L1) following low-energy trauma. The patient underwent percutaneous posterior spinal instrumentation, yet the poor bone quality detected intraoperatively prompted further diagnostic evaluation. Subsequently, low bone mineral density (BMD) was detected, and a rare plastine-3 (PLS3) gene mutation was revealed in the genetic analysis. The patient was initiated on teriparatide therapy after the discovery of osteoporosis postoperatively. It is, therefore, imperative to investigate all young patients with low-energy spinal fractures preoperatively to discover the underlying pathology promptly.
Keywords: burst fracture; early-onset osteoporosis; gene mutation; osteoporotic spinal fracture; plastin-3; pls3.
Copyright © 2023, Nikolaou et al.