Unilateral facet dislocation of the lumbosacral junction.

Abstract

Fracture-dislocation of the lumbosacral junction is an extremely rare injury. The authors are aware of only 24 reported cases. Only seven of these were unilateral facet dislocations. In this report, the authors review their experience with four cases of unilateral facet dislocations at the lumbosacral junction. In one of these cases, there was a pre-existing spondylolysis at L5, and the patient sustained a concomitant sacral fracture. From their review, the authors recommend the use of open reduction with internal fixation and lumbosacral fusion as the treatment of choice for this injury.