Is Late Neurologic Decompression Effective in Traumatic Spinal Cord Injury? Report of Two Cases and Review of the Literature

Abstract

Introduction: Traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI) is a catastrophic event for patients with neurologic deficit and for the society in terms of economic issues. The prevalence of SCI seems to be increasing. There is not enough evidence regarding late neurologic decompression in patients with spinal cord injury.
Case Presentation: Here, we report on two patients with spinal cord injury, who were referred to our department after several days of trauma and both underwent decompression and posterior instrumented fusion (posterolateral decompression ) with favorable results.
Conclusions: It seems that late neurologic decompression might have some benefits for patients with SCI.