A less invasive posterior approach for the management of extended secondary epidural abscess technical note

Spondylodiscitis is considered to be the main cause of epidural abscess. In this report, the authors present their concept for the management of the extended epidural abscess that occurs in combination with spondylodiscitis. It consists of debridement and fusion for spondylodiscitis together with epidural abscess drainage using a microscopically assisted percutaneous technique. In the period from April 2000 to April 2004, 5 patients with spondylodiscitis and an accompanying extended epidural abscess were operated on. The mean age of the patients was 66 years. There were 4 males and one female. The follow-up period ranged from 3-12 months. To manage the extended epidural abscess, the authors created one or two drainage sites along the extension of epidural abscess. These drainage sites were made using a microscopically assisted percutaneous approach. In all presented cases, the offending organism was Staphylococcus aureus. The postoperative infection markers showed marked regression. The postoperative control MRI demonstrated effective drainage of the extended epidural abscess. Regarding the neurological deficits, 3 patients previously classified as Frankel C showed an improvement to Frankel E within 3 months postoperatively. From these results, it seems that our technique (ventro-dorsal abscess drainage combined with a microscopically assisted percutaneous approach) could be a successful method for the management of the extended epidural abscess associated with spondylodiscitis.