Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy: The Role of Posterior Decompression, Arthrodesis, and Instrumentation

Dino Samartzis; John K. Ratliff; Mick J. Perez-Cruet

doi:10.1055/s-2003-41146

Seminars in Neurosurgery, Table of Contents

Seminars in Neurosurgery 2003; 14(1): 021-030
DOI: 10.1055/s-2003-41146

Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy: The Role of Posterior Decompression, Arthrodesis, and Instrumentation

Dino Samartzis¹ , John K. Ratliff^2,3 , Mick J. Perez-Cruet^2,3

¹Graduate Divisions, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and The University for Oxford, Oxford, England
²Department of Neurosurgery, Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois
³Institute for Spine Care, Chicago Institute of Neurosurgery and Neuroresearch, Chicago, Illinois

Abstract

ABSTRACT

Cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) is an insidious, progressive disease process that presents with a number of symptoms frequently refractory to conservative nonoperative treatments that often require operative intervention. Nevertheless, controversy exists over the optimal choice of surgical treatment for CSM. For patients with progressive symptoms despite nonoperative therapy, posterior decompression is an appropriate treatment option dependent upon location of pathology, extent of degenerative disease, and cervical alignment. Fusion and instrumentation is a further adjunct to posterior cervical decompression and has gained popularity as a method of maintaining cervical spine stability and alignment following decompression.

KEYWORDS

Cervical spondylotic myelopathy - cervical spine surgery - laminectomy - fusion - laminoplasty

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References

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