title: Loss of evoked potentials during spinal surgery due to spinal cord hemorrhage.
abstract: The cortical somatosensory evoked potential (SEP) disappeared during corrective spinal surgery in a patient with muscular dystrophy. The patient died 18 hours after surgery. Autopsy revealed an intramedullary hemorrhage 4 mm in diameter in the posterior horn of the cervical spinal cord. Microscopically, hypoxic neurons were seen adjacent to the hemorrhagic area, implying that the lesion was at least 6 hours old. The hemorrhage corresponded to the loss of SEPs and confirms that spinal cord monitoring can detect such lesions.
authors.affiliation: Wessex Neurological Centre, General Hospital, Southampton, UK.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Shukla
authors.forename: T B
authors.initials: TB
authors.lastname: Docherty
authors.forename: R K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Jackson
authors.forename: R O
authors.initials: RO
authors.lastname: Weller
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Sedgwick
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005073:Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory; D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009136:Muscular Dystrophies / Q000150:complications; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D013118:Spinal Cord Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013131:Spine / Q000601:surgery*