Stenotic myelopathy due to ossification of posterior longitudinal ligament or degenerative spondylosis compresses the spinal cord and produces pain, motor weakness, sensory change, spasticity by several factors such as direct compression,
vascular
factor, mechanical factors. Chronic compression of spinal cord causes a ischemic change of spinal cord and cord atrophy. In this condition, only decompression of cord with wide decompressive laminectomy or expansive laminoplasty initially can
expect
mild improvement of clinical conditions of cord compression, but it cannot improve the irreversible ischemic change or atrophy of cord.
Omentum in peritoneal cavity has good blood supply and has lipid angiogenic factors proven by experimental study. Using these characteristics omentum transposition to spinal cord in chronic spinal cord injured patients have been tried.
Authors tri d the omentum-spinal transposition after wide decomp[ressive laminectomy in three cases of severe nontraumatic spinal stenotic myelopathy and experienced the marked clinical improvement in one case of them. Operative thechniques were
introduced and literatures were reviewed.
|