Wiltse's 1962 paper investigates the etiology and epidemiology of spondylolisthesis caused by pars interarticularis defects, synthesizing fetal dissection data, family radiographic studies, comparative anatomy across primates, histology, and genetic analysis to determine when, in whom, and why this condition develops.
When you see a child aged 5–15 with back pain and a pars defect, think: screen siblings and parents (26% family incidence), watch most aggressively between ages 10–15 for slip progression, and if you see >30% slip with a wedged L5 body and dome-shaped sacrum in a child under 15, intervene with dorsal fusion before progression — waiting is the highest-risk strategy.
Wiltse's 1962 paper investigates the etiology and epidemiology of spondylolisthesis caused by pars interarticularis defects, synthesizing fetal dissection data, family radiographic studies, comparative anatomy across primates, histology, and genetic analysis to determine when, in whom, and why this condition develops.
When you see a child aged 5–15 with back pain and a pars defect, think: screen siblings and parents (26% family incidence), watch most aggressively between ages 10–15 for slip progression, and if you see >30% slip with a wedged L5 body and dome-shaped sacrum in a child under 15, intervene with dorsal fusion before progression — waiting is the highest-risk strategy.