Asian Spine J.  2011 Jun;5(2):125-129. 10.4184/asj.2011.5.2.125.

A Broken Drill-bit Fragment Causing Severe Radiating Pain after Cervical Total Disc Replacement: A Case Report

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. futurespine@gmail.com

Abstract

This is a case report of a 38-year-old man with severe radiating pain on upper extremity after cervical total disc replacement (TDR). We faced an unusual complication that has not been reported yet. He underwent cervical TDR for left central disc protrusion on C5-6. After the surgery, preoperative symptom disappeared. However, at postoperative 1 year, he complained severe right-sided radiating pain that had a sudden onset. On postoperative X-ray, a metal fragment which seemed like a broken drill bit was shown within the spinal canal. To remove that, right-sided anterior microforaminotomy on C5-6 was performed and the metal fragment was removed successfully. After that, anterior fusion was done because the motion of the artificial disc was minimal and the removed structure seemed to attenuate stability during cervical motion. The operation resulted in prompt symptomatic relief. During cervical TDR, particular attention should be paid to the procedures that require using drill-bits.

Keyword

Drill-bit fragment; Complication; Cervical total disc replacement

MeSH Terms

Adult
Humans
Isothiocyanates
Mandrillus
Spinal Canal
Total Disc Replacement
Upper Extremity
Isothiocyanates
Full Text Links
  • ASJ
Actions
Cited
CITED
export Copy
Close
Share
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
Similar articles
Copyright © 2024 by Korean Association of Medical Journal Editors. All rights reserved.     E-mail: koreamed@kamje.or.kr