Surgical treatment for cervical myelopathy with calcification of the ligamentum flavum

In the past 3 years, we have encountered 8 subjects surgically treated for cervical myelopathy with calcification of the ligamentum flavum. We analyzed the patients' data with regard to clinical symptoms, X-ray findings, and surgical results. In X-ray findings, they were compared with 30 subjects aged 60 to 75 as the control group without neurological deficit.Common clinical symptoms were sensory and motor disturbance, and numbness in the upper extremity. Preoperative X-rays suggested that the range of motion of the cervical spine tended to increase at the level at which the ligamentum flavum calcified, compared with the same level of the control group. In 6 subjects, the Hirabayashis' recovery rate was more than 60%, but in 2 subjects whose preoperative JOA score was less than 10 points, the recovery rate was poor.In this study, calcification of the ligamentum flavum of cervical spine is considered to be caused by the dynamic factor of the cervical spine.