Providing assistance to our military is a very important part of our work.
A 40-year-old patient came to us, who was fulfilling his duty to his homeland at the front and constantly carried heavy things, wore a bulletproof vest and was subjected to heavy physical exertion. Gradually, the healthy man developed pain in his right arm, which increased, and treatment in the military hospital did not help. The patient was referred to the Ternopil Regional Clinical Hospital, where he underwent a very intensive course of treatment in the neurological department. Unfortunately, the treatment was not effective and a neurosurgeon was invited for a consultation .
During the examination, the patient was found to have decreased strength in the biceps muscle on the right. There was a loss of sensation in the innervation zone of the C6 root and positive tension symptoms. The lack of effect from conservative treatment required the proposal of surgical intervention. The patient willingly agreed, because the pain syndrome was so severe and debilitating that he could not sleep and it was very difficult for him to find a position of his neck and arm that would not hurt. The patient tried to walk non-stop all day long to feel less pain. And at night the patient woke up often and had to constantly take painkillers.
During the examination, a significant narrowing of the root canal of the C6 root was detected, which caused similar symptoms. Such narrowing of the root canals occurs, as a rule, with a herniated disc or with the growth of bone tissue of the vertebral bodies and articular processes. This leads to compression of the root. It is practically impossible to cure such a condition conservatively.
The operation in this case should include the removal of excess bone and soft tissue structures (discs, ligaments) to decompress the root and stabilize the spine . But there are alternative types of interventions when the removal of bone and ligament structures does not necessarily require fixation. Such procedures include anterior root decompression. During the procedure, a minimal amount of bone and connective tissue is removed, which allows the segment (2 adjacent vertebral bodies and the disc) to remain stable.
The operation was performed at the Ternopil Regional Clinical Psychoneurological Hospital (TOVA) by the head of the neurosurgical department, Oleksiy Leontiev. He was assisted by Vyacheslav Dmytruk. The operation was successful. The pain disappeared immediately after the intervention. Neurological symptoms (muscle weakness and sensitivity disorders disappeared over the next 5 days). There were no complications or consequences. Video report
On the 6th day, the patient was discharged from the hospital in satisfactory condition. He was given another 30 days to recover at the VLK, after which he would like to continue defending the country.
Such minimally invasive and effective methods of treating spinal pathology are possible due to the availability of very high-quality modern equipment in the operating room of the KNP “TOKPL” TOR and the experience of performing such operations among the department’s doctors. We always treat not only our military, but also civilian patients with sensitivity and respect. We are happy to help everyone to the best of our ability.
And, at present, it is not necessary to place stabilizing structures and metal in every such case. In addition, the absence of vertebral fusion preserves the mobility of the segment and has a beneficial effect on the entire spine, preserving its normal physiological functioning.
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