Abstract
Calcium crystal deposition rarely occurs in the ligamentum flavum of the cervical spine. It may cause a variety of symptoms such as myeloradiculopathy.
We report three cases of calcification of the ligamentum flavum in the cervical spine. The patient in Case 1 was a fifty-three-year-old man. The chief complaint was numbness of arm and leg, and gait disturbance. Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) score was 4 points. Radiograph and computed tomography (CT) showed calcification in the ligamentum flavum at the C5-6 level. The patient in Case 2 was forty-nine-year-old man. The chief complaint was pain and numbness in the left arm. JOA score was 16 points. There was calcification in the ligamentum flavum at the C5-6, 6-7, 7-Th 1 levels. The patient in Case 3 was a seventy-one-year-old woman. The chief complaint was gait disturbance and loss of coordination. JOA score was 8 points. There was calcification in the ligamentum flavum at the C4-5, 6-7 levels. The symptoms in all cases were improved by laminoplasty and resection of calcified component. There was no reccurense of calcification. They were satisfied with this treatment.
CLF is more common in elderly women, but it rarely cause symptoms. Calcification often occurs in the middle and lower cervical spine, especially at the C4-5, 5-6 levels, and neurological deficit progresses rapidly. CT gave the most diagnostic information showing oval-shaped calcified lesions anterior to the laminae with clear margins.
