Application of Intraoperative Neurophysiological Monitoring (IONM) for Preventing Dysphagia After Anterior Cervical Surgery: A Prospective Study

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the clinical value of intraoperative nerve monitoring (IONM) for dysphagia after anterior cervical surgery with and without IONM. METHODS: A prospective, randomized, controlled study was conducted on 46 patients who underwent anterior cervical spine surgery by an experienced orthopaedic surgeon. Twenty-three patients who underwent anterior cervical surgery did not undergo IONM (non-IONM group), while the other 23 patients who underwent anterior cervical surgery did ("IONM group"). The swallowing function of patients was evaluated using the EAT -10 and endoscopic evaluation of swallowing (FEES) after surgery. RESULTS: There was no difference in the incidence of swallowing difficulties between the intervention group and the control group on the third day or sixth week after surgery. At the 12th week after surgery, the incidence of swallowing difficulties in the intervention group and the control group was significantly different (43.5% vs. 13.0%, P [ 0.024). CONCLUSIONS: IONM is a promising tool for identifying and protecting the spinal cord and nerves during anterior cervical surgery. Our research revealed that IONM significantly reduced the occurrence of swallowing disorders 12 weeks after surgery, but the effect was not significant at the third or sixth week after surgery.