The temporal and spatial relationship between percutaneous vertebral augmentation and new symptomatic fractures.

The risk of NSFs is greater for untreated vertebrae located closer to augmented vertebrae than for untreated vertebrae further away. This distance dependence occurs mainly within the three segments closest to the augmented vertebra. The risk of NSFs decreases with time after augmentation, and it is also related to the number of augmented vertebrae, the type of augmentation, and whether the untreated vertebrae are thoracolumbar or not.