Laminoplasty improves respiratory function in elderly patients with cervical spondylotic myelopathy

Respiratory insufficiency after acute cervical trauma is well documented, but the relationship between respiratory function and chronic lesions, such as cervical spondylosis, has received scant attention. This clinical study investigated the effect of cervical spondylosis on respiratory function in 12 patients over 65 years of age who underwent expansive laminoplasty. Functional and neurological status were assessed using the Japanese Orthopaedic Association (JOA) scale and Neurosurgical Cervical Spine Scale (NCSS). To assess the effect of laminoplasty on respiratory function in patients with cervical spondylotic myelopathy, lung volumes including vital capacity, tidal volume (TV), inspiratory reserve volume, expiratory reserve volume, inspiratory capacity, and forced expiratory volume were measured by spirometer before surgery and 6 months after surgery. The arterial blood gas values were also measured before and after surgery. All patients showed functional improvement after surgery, and neurological examination 6 months after surgery revealed a significant improvement in both JOA scale and NCSS scores (p < 0.001). There were no significant differences in most lung volumes, but TV (p = 0.039) at 6 months after surgery showed a significant increase compared to before surgery. PCO2 also showed a significant reduction after surgery (p = 0.047). This limited study revealed that laminoplasty improved respiratory function in patients over 65 years of age with cervical spondylotic myelopathy. Lung volume measurement may be one method to estimate spinal cord function after a surgical procedure.