Complications of Post-Traumatic Spinal Surgery

Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the frequency and complications of post-traumatic spinal surgeries. Materials and Methods: A prospective observational study was conducted at JPMC for six months and included 55 patients presenting with post-traumatic spinal injuries who were operated on. Information on the patient’s demographics, clinical findings, radiological findings, type of surgical procedure, and postoperative complications were recorded. A chi-square test was employed to compare difficulties with demographic characteristics. Results: Our study comprised of patients with an age of 39.55+/-6.19 years; of them, 72.7 percent were males, and overall complications occurred in 30.9 percent of patients, which included wound infection (10.9%), CSF fistula (3.6%), wound dehiscence (1.8%), pneumonia (3.6%), heart arrhythmia (1.8%), lung congestion (1.8%), instrumental loosening (1.8%), postoperative visual loss (1.8%), and diathermy burns (3.6%). Conclusion: 30.9 percent of patients operated for spinal traumatic injuries developed complications. A few of these complications are dreaded and need to be communicated to patients/attendants and necessary steps should be taken to prevent them.