We report an autopsy case of postoperative changes in ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL).
The Patient was a 71 year-old man who complained of limb numbness and disturbance of fine finger movement. He was diagnosed as having OPLL of the cervical spine, and had a laminectomy from C2 to C7 in 1984. In 1992 an autopsy was done after his death of lung cancer.
Cervical spinal cord was compressed by posterior longitudinal ligament and concave in the center of the anterior portion. Histologically the change in the white matter was remarkable in the posterior column, demyelinisation could be seen. In the gray matter, particularly in the anterior horn, there was marked gliosis and degeneration of motor neurons.
