Symptomatic progression of cervical myelopathy and the role of nonsurgical management: a consensus statement.

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Abstract

[Indexed for MEDLINE] 12. Orthop Clin North Am. 2012 Jan;43(1):41-52, viii. doi: 10.1016/j.ocl.2011.09.002. Anterior approach for complex cervical spondylotic myelopathy. Siemionow KB(1), Neckrysh S. Author information: (1)Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, University of Illinois, 835 South Wolcott Avenue, Room E-270, Chicago, IL 60612, USA. siemiok@gmail.com Cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM) is a slowly progressive disease resulting from age-related degenerative changes in the spine that can lead to spinal cord dysfunction and significant functional disability. The degenerative changes and abnormal motion lead to vertebral body subluxation, osteophyte formation, ligamentum flavum hypertrophy, and spinal canal narrowing. Repetitive movement during normal cervical motion may result in microtrauma to the spinal cord. Disease extent and location dictate the choice of surgical approach. Anterior spinal decompression and instrumented fusion is successful in preventing CSM progression and has been shown to result in functional improvement in most patients. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. DOI: 10.1016/j.ocl.2011.09.002