title: Selective posterior decompression of the cervical spine.
abstract: Posterior decompression of the cervical spine is an accepted treatment for patients with cervical canal disease, but some patients experience postoperative axial pain and C5 or C6 palsy that affect their quality of life. Here we describe selective posterior decompression using a spinous process-splitting approach to prevent these complications performed in 17 patients with myelopathy treated at median 2.4 levels by selective posterior decompression via the transspinous approach. Clinical symptoms, axial pain, and C5 or C6 palsy were compared before and after treatment. The range of motion of the cervical spine and shift of the cervical cord were studied at the C5 level. All patients experienced symptom improvement and none suffered deterioration or required reoperation. The Japanese Orthopaedic Association score improved from 10.9 to 14.4 points and none of the patients reported C5 or C6 palsy or axial pain at the last follow-up visit. There was no statistically significant change in pre- and postoperative cervical alignment and range of motion. The posterior shift of the spinal cord at the C5 level was 1.7 mm. None of our 17 patients experienced significant postoperative axial pain after selective posterior decompression via the transspinous approach. Minimal spinal cord shift at the C5 level may have contributed to the reduced incidence of postoperative C5 or C6 palsy in our series. Selective posterior decompression is less invasive and effective in some patients with cervical canal disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Chiba Hokuso Hospital, Nippon Medical School, Inzai, Chiba, Japan. kyongson@nms.ac.jp
authors.forename: Kyongsong
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Toyohiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Isu
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sugawara
authors.forename: Ryoji
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Matsumoto
authors.forename: Masanori
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Isobe
authors.forename: Daijiro
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Morimoto
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mishina
authors.forename: Shiro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kobayashi
authors.forename: Daizo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Teramoto
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002574:Cervical Vertebrae / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D019299:Decompression, Surgical / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019635:Neurosurgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D011859:Radiography; D013117:Spinal Cord Compression / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D055009:Spondylosis / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*