Devices for anterior cervical spine surgery of spinal cord injury requiring tracheostomy

Abstract

Pulmonary complications are the most common cause of death in patients with acute tetraplegia. However generally, surgeons are cognizance of infection after anterior cervical spine procedures in acute spinal cord injury patients after or immediately before the placement of tracheostomy. Two patients had both anterior cervical spine surgery and tracheostomy performed in this term by using the following devices. No patients had infection after surgery. Our devices are as follows: (1) When the operation area of anterior cervical spine surgery is performed, the pretracheal fascia is not opened. (2) When the anterior cervical spine surgery is performed after tracheostomy, the operation area and the tracheostomy area are isolated by draping. (3) Incisions made must have as maximum a distance as possible between the areas of anterior cervical spine surgery and tracheostomy. If both anterior cervical spine surgery and tracheostomy are performed in short term, it is necessary that the device is implemented for the case of anterior cervical spine surgery with a spinal cord injury requiring tracheostomy.