Perioperative major neurologic deficits as a complication of spine surgery

This study looks at major neurological complications, like paralysis or loss of bowel/bladder control, that can happen after spine surgery. These complications are rare but devastating. The researchers reviewed the records of patients who had spine surgery and then were referred to a spinal cord injury rehabilitation center because they experienced new neurological problems. The study found that these complications were more common in surgeries involving the thoracic and cervical spine, especially when the surgery was performed to treat myelopathy (spinal cord compression).

• 1
  The most common causes of neurologic injury were postoperative fluid collections, malposition of instrumentation, and traumatic decompression.
• 2
  Traumatic decompressions and cord infarcts had significantly worse neurologic deterioration than fluid collections or malposition of instrumentation.
• 3
  87% of patients lost the ability to ambulate and 66% lost volitional bowel-bladder control following the neurological event.