Minimally invasive vertebral augmentation for osteoporotic vertebral compression fractures

Table 2 Common complications and preventive strategies in vertebral augmentation

Complication	Main mechanism or concern	Key preventive strategy
Cement leakage	High pressure injection, cortical disruption, posterior wall defect	Incremental injection, real-time imaging, appropriate cement viscosity, accurate needle placement
Adjacent vertebral fracture	Baseline osteoporosis with possible additional biomechanical stress	Anti-osteoporosis treatment, fall prevention, balanced correction, longitudinal follow-up
Pulmonary cement embolism	Venous migration of cement	Avoid overly early low-viscosity injection, monitor cement spread continuously
Infection	Contamination or poor perioperative control	Strict sterile technique and perioperative risk optimization
Neurological injury	Malposition or symptomatic leakage	Accurate puncture trajectory and immediate imaging assessment when symptoms occur