Circumferential fusion for cervical kyphotic deformity.

OBJECT: The treatment of cervical kyphotic deformity is challenging. Few prior reports have examined combined anterior/posterior correction methods, and fusion rates and standardized outcomes are rarely cited in literature examining these techniques. The authors present their midterm results with cervical kyphosis correction.

METHODS

The authors retrospectively reviewed the charts of 30 patients with cervical kyphotic deformity who underwent circumferential spine surgery between 2001 and 2007. The causes of the deformity included chronic fracture in 17 patients, degenerative disease in 10, and tumor in 3. Anterior procedures included discectomies and corpectomies/osteotomies at 1 or more levels with fusion. Posterior operations included decompression and/or osteotomies with lateral mass or pedicle fixation. Preoperative and postoperative Ishihara kyphosis indices, modified Japanese Orthopaedic Association (mJOA) scores, and Nurick grades were analyzed. Arthrodesis was assessed via dynamic radiographs, and CT scans were used to assess fusion in questionable cases.

RESULTS

One patient was lost to follow-up. Two patients died within 1 month of surgery. The follow-up period in the remaining 27 patients ranged from 1 to 6.4 years (mean 2.6 years). Ishihara indices improved from a preoperative mean of -17.7 to a postoperative mean of +11.4. The mean Nurick grades improved from 3.2 preoperatively to 1.3 postoperatively. The mJOA scores improved from a preoperative mean of 10 to 15 postoperatively. All surviving patients who underwent follow-up showed postoperative fusion except 1 patient with renal failure and osteoporosis (95% fusion rate). The overall rate of complications (major and minor) was 33.3%.

CONCLUSIONS

In cases of cervical kyphosis, management with decompression, osteotomy, and stabilization from both anterior and posterior approaches can restore cervical lordosis. Furthermore, such surgical techniques can produce measurable improvements in neurological function (as measured with Nurick grades and mJOA scores) and achieve high fusion rates. However, there is a significant rate of complications.