Cerebrospinal fluid pseudocyst after anterior stabilization for cervical spine injury treated by ventricular drainage: case report.

The author describes postsurgical formation of a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pseudocyst after anterior decompression and stabilization for cervical spine injury. The CSF pseudocyst was caused by extensive lacerations to the spinal dura mater. A further contributory factor was a circulation blockage of CSF in the spinal canal, brought about by edema of the contused spinal cord. Ventricular drainage caused rapid collapse of the pseudocyst and its subsequent healing.