Duraplasty with Cervical Fascia Autograft to Reduce Postoperative Complications of Posterior Fossa Tumor Surgery with Suboccipital Midline Approach.

BACKGROUND: The suboccipital midline approach is common dealing with posterior fossa tumors but has a high risk of postoperative complications, such as pseudomeningocele, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak, and meningitis. Neurosurgeons used various kinds of method to lower its rate.

METHODS: A retrospective, single-center review of patients diagnosed with posterior fossa tumor underwent a suboccipital midline approach. Compare the rates of pseudomeningocele, CSF leak, and meningitis between 2 groups (artificial dura mater or cervical fascia autograft). We get the cervical fascia autograft from the superficial layer of deep cervical fascia just above the trapezius.

RESULTS: Our retrospective review involved 123 patients matching the inclusion criteria between January 2009 and April 2019. The complication rate of pseudomeningocele, CSF leak and meningitis were 8.9%, 4.9%, and 17.9%, respectively. The presence of pseudomeningocele or CSF leak for group "artificial" was 11 of 75 (14.67%) and for group "autograft" it was 3 of 48 (6.25%). The rate of meningitis for group "artificial" (24.0%, 18 of 75) was significantly higher (P = 0.027) than the one for group "autograft" (8.33%, 4 of 48). Multivariate regression analysis suggested that the age was negatively correlated with postoperative pseudomeningocele or CSF leak (P = 0.006), with meningitis (P < 0.001). Using cervical fascia autograft decreased the rate of meningitis (P = 0.021) while showing no statistically significant clinical impact on pseudomeningocele or CSF leak.

CONCLUSIONS: Applying the cervical fascia autograft to reconstruct the dura during posterior fossa surgery is a simple and effective method to reduce the rate of meningitis as compared with artificial dura mater.