title: Pressure changes following constriction of the cauda equina. An experimental study in situ.
abstract: During routine autopsies in 11 cadavers, the intact dural sac, including its nerve roots, was circumferentially constricted by a clamp while the pressure under the clamp among the nerve roots was recorded simultaneously. The first sign of a pressure increase--the critical size--occurred at a cross-sectional area of the cauda equina of 77 +/- 13 mm2. To achieve a pressure increase of 50 mm Hg, the cross-sectional area of the cauda equina had to be further constricted at an average of 19 +/- 8%. The corresponding constriction needed to achieve a pressure of 100 mm Hg was 26 +/- 8%. The results indicated that constriction of the cauda equina to a size less than 75 mm2 probably will affect the normal function of the nerve roots of the cauda.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedics, Sahlgren Hospital, Gothenburg University, Sweden.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Schönström
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hansson
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002102:Cadaver; D002420:Cauda Equina / Q000502:physiology*; D003250:Constriction; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009408:Nerve Compression Syndromes / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011312:Pressure; D013130:Spinal Stenosis / Q000503:physiopathology*