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Cervical Spondylotic Myelopathy — Pathophysiology & Surgery

CSM is progressive spinal cord dysfunction due to degenerative stenosis (disc osteophyte complex, ligamentum flavum hypertrophy, OPLL). Symptoms: hand clumsiness, gait imbalance, Lhermitte sign; UMN signs below level (Hoffmann, Babinski) with possible segmental LMN at level. MRI is diagnostic; assess sagittal alignment, number of compressed levels, and canal diameter. Surgery for moderate–severe or progressive CSM: anterior (ACDF/corpectomy) vs posterior (laminoplasty/laminectomy + fusion) based on alignment and levels. Prognostic factors: shorter symptom duration, younger age, no signal change on T2 MRI.

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CSM is progressive spinal cord dysfunction due to degenerative stenosis (disc osteophyte complex, ligamentum flavum hypertrophy, OPLL). Symptoms: hand clumsiness, gait imbalance, Lhermitte sign; UMN signs below level (Hoffmann, Babinski) with possible segmental LMN at level. MRI is diagnostic; assess sagittal alignment, number of compressed levels, and canal diameter. Surgery for moderate–severe or progressive CSM: anterior (ACDF/corpectomy) vs posterior (laminoplasty/laminectomy + fusion) based on alignment and levels. Prognostic factors: shorter symptom duration, younger age, no signal change on T2 MRI.
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