'White cord syndrome', a rare but disastrous complication of transient paralysis after posterior cervical decompression for severe cervical spondylotic myelopathy and spinal stenosis: A case report.

'White cord syndrome', a rare but disastrous complication of transient paralysis after posterior cervical decompression for severe cervical spondylotic myelopathy and spinal stenosis: A case report. Exp Ther Med. 2020 Nov;20(5):90 Authors: Liao YX, He SS, He ZM Abstract Transient paralysis following spinal decompression surgery is a rare but devastating postoperative complication. Spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury has been identified as one of the crucial pathogenic factors contributing to the sudden neurological deterioration associated with spinal decompression surgery. 'White cord syndrome' is a characteristic imaging manifestation of spinal cord ischemia-reperfusion injury, referring to high intramedullary signal changes in the sagittal T2-weighted MRI scan with unexplained neurological deficits following surgical decompression. The present study reported on the case of a 51-year old male patient who suffered from acute left limb hemiplegic paralysis following posterior cervical laminectomy decompression for severe cervical spondylotic myelopathy and spinal stenosis, which were caused by ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament. The patient's neurological function gradually improved after the immediate administration of high-dose methylprednisolone therapy combined with mannitol and neurotrophic drugs. At the 2-month follow-up, the intensity of the spinal cord signal on MRI had almost returned to normal and the '...
Source: Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine - Category: General Medicine Tags: Exp Ther Med Source Type: research