Logo image
Back
Poster 183: Postoperative Visual Loss Following Spine Surgery: A Case Series
Abstract   Open access   Peer reviewed

Poster 183: Postoperative Visual Loss Following Spine Surgery: A Case Series

Eric W. Aschenbrenner, William S. Craig and Kurtis M. Hoppe
Archives of physical medicine and rehabilitation, Vol.88(9), pp.E61-E62
2007
DOI: 10.1016/j.apmr.2007.06.436
url
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apmr.2007.06.436View
Published (Version of record) Open Access

Abstract

Setting: Tertiary care academic medical center. Patients: 3 patients, ages 63, 66, and 73 years old, with posterior ischemic optic neuropathy following multilevel laminectomies with fusion. Case Descriptions: Case 1 was a man with previous laminectomies from L3 to S1 with intractable back pain who developed a pseudoarthrosis. He subsequently underwent elective decompression revision with bilateral laminoforaminotomy at L2-3, revision fusion from L2 to S1, and instrumentation from L2 to S1. Following surgery, the patient could not see. Case 2 was a woman with spinal stenosis, neurogenic claudication, and back pain who underwent elective L1 through L5 decompressive laminectomies and fusion, and L3 to L5 foraminotomies with spinal instrumentation. The patient could not see after surgery. Case 3 was a man with a persistent left-sided radiculopathy who had previous posterior decompression at L3 through S1 levels who elected for an L5-S1 laminectomy and T11 to S2 instrumented fusion. After surgery, he noted a brief loss of vision with resolution but reduced visual acuity in his right eye. Consultation with ophthalmology provided a diagnosis of posterior ischemic optic neuropathy in all 3 cases. Assessment/Results: No significant improvement was noted in vision in all 3 cases at a minimum of 9 months postsurgery. Discussion: Posterior ischemic optic neuropathy can be a complication following spinal surgery. Various degrees of vision loss have been noted in the literature. All involved in rehabilitation of these patients must be cognizant of their unique rehabilitation needs. Conclusions: Visual loss can be a complication of spinal surgery. Although there is no defined incidence of this complication, it is important to counsel patients regarding this potential adverse outcome. An interdisciplinary approach is necessary when acute visual loss occurs in this setting.
 Laminectomy Optic neuropathy, ischemic Rehabilitation

Details

Metrics

2 Record Views
Logo image