Dysphagia after anterior cervical spine surgery has a 5% to 15% incidence beyond 1-year postsurgery, often attributed to mechanical factors such as pharyngeal thickening and epiglottis inversion. Despite normal neurological examination and electromyography, nerve distortion related to stretching also remains a possibility in these patients and may cause allodynia resulting in odynophagia and dysphagia. Current treatment options for dysphagia after anterior cervical discectomy and fusion are limited to local intraoperative steroid injections and tracheal traction exercises. In our patient, a glossopharyngeal nerve block was effectively used to manage the glossopharyngeal allodynia, thereby reducing the odynophagia and dysphagia, ultimately enhancing oral tolerance.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://dx.doi.org/10.1213/XAA.0000000000001849 | DOI Listing |
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!