Abstract
BACKGROUND: In this retrospective study, we analyzed postoperative cervical and lumbar symptoms following cervical laminoplasty (CLP) for degenerative cervical myelopathy (DCM). METHODS: Patients with DCM (2013-2022) were evaluated using the Japanese Orthopedic Association (JOA) score, the back pain evaluation questionnaire (BPEQ), the cervical myelopathy evaluation questionnaire (CMEQ), the neck disability index (NDI), the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI), and the visual analog scale (VAS). Preoperative and postoperative scores were compared at 1 postoperative year. RESULTS: The study included 155 males and 55 females with an average age of 62.66 years. Patients from both groups demonstrated significant improvement in cervical and lumbar JOAs, BPEQ (ambulation, social life, and mental status), CMEQ (cervical, upper and lower extremities, and quality of life), NDI, ODI, and VAS (neck, shoulder, and upper extremities) using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. CONCLUSION: CLP proved to be an effective treatment for alleviating cervical and lumbar symptoms associated with DCM.