Complications of Computer Tomography Assisted Radiofrequency Ablation in the Treatment of Osteoid Osteoma.

Background: Osteoid osteoma (OO) is one of the most commonly occurring benign bone tumors. It constitutes 10-12% of benign bone tumors and 2-3% of primary bone tumors. In radiofrequency ablation (RFA) treatment, the cells of the tumor are thermally inactivated by the help of electrodes shaped like needles. In our study, we aimed to show the major and minor complications in patients undergoing RFA and to show what should be done to prevent these complications.

Methods: The study was carried out as a prospective study on the follow-up of 87 osteoid osteoma patients treated between 2015 and 2017. The youngest of the patients was 1 year old and the oldest was 42 years old. The RFA procedure lasted 10 min on average, excluding anesthesia and preparation. All lesions were ablated at 90 degrees for 7 minutes with the heat increased gradually. All patients were followed up for 1 day in the orthopedics clinic.

Results: Complications were observed in 7 patients. The lesions with the most complications were observed to be in the tibia, second-degree burns were seen in 2 patients, and superficial skin infection was observed in 2 patients. In 1 patient, the probe tip was broken and remained within the bone. Intramuscular hematoma was detected in 1 lesion located in the proximal femur. A complaint of numbness in the fingers developed in a lesion located in the metacarpus.

Conclusion: Preventive measures should be taken before the procedure in order to prevent minor complications, and, for major complications, close follow-up should be done after the procedure and patients should be kept away from heavy physical activities for the first 3 months.