Spinal fracture can be primary due to injury or secondary (pathological- in an already weak bone). Vertebral fixation (also known as "spinal fixation") is surgical procedure in which two or more vertebrae are anchored to each other through a synthetic "vertebral fixation device", with the aim of reducing vertebral mobility and thus avoiding possible damage to the spinal cord and/or spinal roots.

The types of fracture fixation may include:

1) Cervical:

• Anterior cervical plating with or without corpectomy.
• Anterior cervical cage insertion and plating.
• Posterior cervical lateral mass screw fixation and stabilization.
• Anterior or posterior stabilization with neurological decompression.

2) Thoracic:

• Percutaneous dorsal fracture stabilization. (minimally invasive)
• Open dorsal fracture stabilization.
• Thoracic fracture fixation with laminectomy (decompression) and anterior cage support.
• Kyphoplasty/vertebroplasty for fractured vertebra.
• Anterior transthoracic approach for fracture fixation and anterior column reconstruction (cage)