1987•Orthopedics & TraumatologyOpen access
Complications of surgical treatment for acute cervical cord injury.
Kunio Sasaki, Keiichiro Shiba, Takayoshi Ueta, Nobuyuki Maeyama, Tetsujiro Kikuchi, Tetsu Murao, Koichi Shimonagayoshi, Nobuaki Tsunoda
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Abstract
We studied the complications of surgical treatment for acute cervical cord injuries. 193 patients were operated on within one month after the injuries. Operation was performed under general anesthesia. 74 patients sufferd from complete lesion, 29 motor complete and sensory incomplete, 73 incomplete lesion. 17 patients were normal neural status.One patient deteriorated neurologically after the operation, but her paralysis was two segments above the bony damage before the operation. 6 patients died within three months after the operation. But the causes of death did not relate to the operative intervention. 5 patients failed in bone grafts and were reoperated. Respiratory problem, needed prolonged intubation or tracheostomy, existed in thirty patients. 15 suffered from intestinal bleeding.Surgical treatment for acute cervical cord injuries requires attention to the general status after paralysis. Early decompression and rigid fixation gives good condition to paralysed patients.
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