J Korean Neurosurg Soc.  2008 May;43(5):232-236. 10.3340/jkns.2008.43.5.232.

Removal of Intradural-Extramedullary Spinal Cord Tumors with Unilateral Limited Laminectomy

• Sim JE
• Noh SJ
• Song YJ
• Kim HD

• KMID: 1477586
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3340/jkns.2008.43.5.232

Abstract

Total laminectomy for the removal of intradural-extramedullary spinal cord tumors has been used widely, but postoperative complications often develop, such as kyphosis, spinal instability, and persistent back pain. In this study, we evaluated seven patients with intradural-extramedullary spinal cord tumors with respect to the value of unilateral limited laminectomy. Our cases included six schwannomas, and one meningioma. The cervical region was involved in four cases, the thoracolumbar region in two cases, and the lumbar region in one case. The rationale for choosing a unilateral approach is to preserve musculoligamentous attachments and posterior bony elements as much as possible. The patients were mobilized on the third postoperative day and preoperative neurological symptoms were recovered within a few weeks. We did not observe any complication relating to unilateral limited laminectomy and at follow-up evaluation (at 3 and 12 months postoperatively), none of the patients showed spinal deformity or spinal instability. We think that the unilateral limited laminectomy is a safe and efficient technique for the treatment of intradural-extramedullary spinal cord tumors. We suggest that this technique is one of the best treatments for these tumors.

Keyword

Laminectomy; Intradural extramedullary spinal cord neoplams

MeSH Terms

Back Pain
Congenital Abnormalities
Follow-Up Studies
Humans
Kyphosis
Laminectomy
Lumbosacral Region
Meningioma
Neurilemmoma
Postoperative Complications
Spinal Cord
Spinal Cord Neoplasms