Cervical fusion is the joining of two or more vertebrae in the neck through bone grafts or hardware. It decreases mobility of damaged joints and stabilizes them, preventing further collapse. Often performed in conjunction with removal of a damaged disc, cervical fusion is most often attempted through the anterior or front of the neck, a procedure called anterior cervical fusion. When it is performed from the back of the neck, it is called posterior cervical fusion. Complications can occur from either type of cervical spinal fusion surgery.
Surgical Anesthesia
Complications common to any surgery that can occur in cervical fusion include excessive bleeding, anesthesia complications and development of blood clots in the legs that can break off and lodge in the lungs, causing a pulmonary embolism. Infection in the spine, a serious and difficult to treat complication, may require further surgery to treat the infected areas, eOrthopod states.
Dislodgement
Discs fuse together over time. Metal hardware such as screws and plates often hold the discs together while they heal and grow together. Hardware can dislodge or loosen, causing pain in other areas. Bone grafts not help in place by metal hardware have a 1 to 2 percent chance of dislodgment, orthopedic surgeon Peter Ullrich M.D. of the NeuroSpine Center of Wisconsin states.
Non-union
Bone grafts of a person's own bone or donor bone is used for cervical fusion surgery. Autograft, use of a patient's bone taken from the hip, heals better than allograft bone from another person, fusing well in 90 to 95 percent of cases, according to Ullrich. People who smoke, those with diseases that inhibit healing or who take medications that interfere with healing may require use of autografts for optimal results.
Nerve Damage
Damage can occur to nerves in the spine during surgery, resulting in pain or loss of function. Nerve damage can occur during surgery or after surgery as scar tissue forms in the area. Cervical corpectomy, performed to repair more severe damage to the spine from spinal stenosis, carries an increased risk of nerve damage that can, in rare cases, lead to partial or complete paralysis, Ullrich warns.
Larynx Damage
Anterior cervical fusion surgery can damage the nerve that leads to the larynx, the part of the throat used for speaking. Most anterior cervical fusion surgery is done on the left side of the neck, because the pathway of the nerve is more predictable and damage is easier to avoid, eOrthopod explains. Stretching of the nerve during surgery can cause temporary hoarseness. If the nerve is accidentally cut, permanent hoarseness, voice weakness or other voice changes can occur as a result of damage.
