DEVELOPMENT OF HYDROCEPHALUS AFTER CERVICAL LAMINOPLASTY FOR OSSIFICATION OF THE POSTERIOR LONGITUDINAL LIGAMENT - CASE-REPORT

We report a 69-year-old woman who developed serious hydrocephalus afte r cervical laminoplasty for ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament. The patient presented with approximately 50% spinal canal c ompromise pertaining to ossified lesion at C5 and C6 levels and subseq uently underwent a C3-C7 open-door laminoplasty, followed by uneventfu l neurological recovery until 2 weeks postoperatively. Despite a favou rable postoperative course, she presented with serious symptoms and si gns of intracranial hypertension about 3 weeks after surgery. Computed tomography demonstrated the appearance of marked hydrocephalus, with no explainable cause. A ventriculoperitoneal shunt followed by removal of subdural fluid in the suboccipital fossa resulted in resolution of the clinical symptoms and of the hydrocephalus. It is important to be aware of the very rare occurrence of such intracranial neurological c ompromise after a cervical laminoplasty operation for long-standing os sification of the posterior longitudinal ligament.