Türk Nöroşirürji Dergisi 2011 , Vol 21 , Num 3
Symptomatic Pneumocephalus after Lumbar Disc Surgery: A Case Report
Bora GÜRER, Hayri KERTMEN, Erdal Reşit YILMAZ, Habibullah DOLGUN, Zeki ŞEKERCİ
S.B. Dışkapı Yıldırım Beyazıt Eğitim ve Araştırma Hastanesi, 1.Beyin Cerrahi Kliniği, Ankara, Türkiye Pneumocephalus, the presence of air in the cerebral cavity, is a well known entity for neurosurgeons. A spinal origin of pneumocephalus may be associated with spinal trauma, penetrating injury, tumors, infections, and iatrogenic causes such as lumbar puncture and laparoscopic biopsy. Involuntary durotomy and cerebrospinal fluid leakage during spinal surgery are well known complications. Lumbar disc surgery is rarely complicated with pneumocephalus. Here we present a case of a 54-year-old woman who underwent lumbar disc surgery for recurrent herniation in whom pneumocephalus occurred after intraoperative involuntary durotomy. The patient began to complain of headache and dizziness, and began vomiting on the first postoperative day. Head computed tomography scan revealed diffuse pneumocephalus. Her symptoms gradually improved and she was discharged free of pain with no neurological deficit after a week. Anahtar Kelimeler : Complication, Lumbar disc herniation, Pneumocephalus, Spinal surgery