Ossification of the cervical anterior longitudinal ligament contributing to dysphagia - Case report

The authors evaluated the clinical, radiological, and surgical management of ossification of the anterior longitudinal ligament (OALL) that contributed to dysphagia in a patient with simultaneous cervical ossification of the posterior longitudinal ligament (OPLL). A 57-year-old man presented with increasing dysphagia and moderate myelopathy. Imaging studies, including esophagoscopy, revealed marked esophageal compression due to GALL that extended between the C2-5 levels and significant C5-7 OPLL that compressed the distal cervical spinal cord. The use of rongeurs and a high-speed drill facilitated excision of the C2-5 GALL mass, and a routine anterior corpectomy with fusion was performed at the C5-7 level. Postoperatively, the patient's dysphagia and symptoms of myelopathy immediately resolved. The strut graft became fully fused 3 months postoperatively, as demonstrated on dynamic x-ray films, and the patient has remained asymptomatic 4 months postoperatively. Patients with dysphagia and coexisting myelopathy benefit from simultaneous surgery for resection of GALL and OPLL masses.