Long-term results of surgical treatment of myelopathy due to cervical spondylosis.

Abstract

T HE treatment of myelopathy due to cervical spondylosis is not always satisfactory. Sometimes good therapeutic resuits are obtained by simple immobilization of the cervical spine; other times even the most complex surgery cannot arrest the course of the disease. These contradictory results are explained by the inaccurate or incomplete knowledge of the mechanism of spinal cord damage. The complex and debated pathogenesis of this disease is well known. But from the surgical viewpoint, in the light of current knowledge and possibilities of treatment, the etiological factors amenable to treatment are: the basic anatomical factor, spondylosis; another anatomical factor, narrowing of the cervical canal; a dynamic factor, arising out of the mobility of the cervical column.