Spinal cord herniation after multilevel anterior cervical corpectomy and fusion for ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament of the cervical spine.

Min, Jun-Hong; Jung, Byung-Joo; Jang, Jee-Soo; Kim, Seok-Kang; Jung, Dae-Jin; Lee, Sang-Ho · J Neurosurg Spine · 2009

case_report · Level V

Where this comes from

Abstract

The authors report the case of a 52-year-old man who had undergone resection of an ossified posterior longitudinal ligament via the anterior approach. The patient experienced postoperative neurological deterioration that may have been caused by a massive cord herniation associated with a dural defect at the corpectomy site. Spinal cord herniation may develop as a complication of anterior cervical decompression. Surgeons should be alert to this condition when planning to treat cervical ossification of the ossified posterior longitudinal ligament via the anterior approach.

Medical subject headings

Anatomy