Impalement injury of the lumbar spine

Impalement is an uncommon injury, which combines aspects of both blunt and penetrating trauma. Particularly, reported cases of impalement injury of the lumbar spine are very rare. We present a case of impalement in which a steel rod penetrated the back into the vertebral body of the lumbar spine as the result of a fall. This injury was treated successfully with irrigation, debridement, and removal of the foreign body in the operating room. Thereafter, a secondary posterolateral interbody fusion (PLIF) procedure was performed due to instability of the lumbar spine. After 1 year, the patient had regained good functional results.